State may challenge ruling on tribal tax collections

OKLAHOMA CITY – The state may take a dispute over tribal sales tax collections to federal appeals court.

An arbiter ruled in April that the state cannot force the Citizen Potawatomi Nation to collect sales tax from nonmembers at its retail businesses, and a court affirmed the decision in June. That seemed to end a months-long battle over tribal sovereignty and Oklahoma’s right to regulate tribes’ retail operations, including alcohol sales.

In a meeting of the Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement Commission last week, Assistant Attorney General Steven Barker said the state might not be done fighting the case.

http://www.news-star.com/news/20160720/state-may-challenge-ruling-on-tribal-tax-collections