CNIGA Condemns CFTC to Attempt Undermine Court Orders and Tribal Sovereignty

Press Release
For Immediate Release

Contact: James May
(916) 754-7540
[email protected]

CNIGA Condemns CFTC to Attempt Undermine Court Orders and Tribal Sovereignty

Agency moves to require nationwide access to prediction markets, undermining a U.S. District Court decision.

November 6, 2026

Sacramento, CA -The California Nations Indian Gaming Association (CNIGA) today condemned the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's latest directive on prediction markets as an attempt to undermine federal and state law and court orders protecting tribal sovereignty.

Only hours after a federal court ordered Kalshi to stop offering sports bets on the lands of three California tribes, the CFTC moved to require prediction markets to offer their products in all 50 states, including on tribal lands. In effect, the agency is allowing these companies to offer gambling products in violation of court orders.

"Tribes went to court to enforce the law and won an order stopping Kalshi's unlawful sports betting on their lands," said CNIGA Chairman James Siva. "Now the CFTC has the audacity to issue an emergency 'interpretation' of the Commodity Exchange Act that essentially prohibits DCM's from complying with the order. This vindictive assault against Indian Country erases any pretense that CFTC Chairman Selig will uphold his public and tribal trust responsibilities."

At stake is tribal nations' sovereign right to determine what gaming takes place on their lands. The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act protects that authority, which prediction markets are attempting to bypass by labeling sports bets as financial contracts.

The CFTC's directive threatens tribal governments' ability to enforce their gaming laws and protect their communities from unauthorized gambling. It also undermines a legal framework that supports tribal economic development and funds essential services for tribal citizens.

"The CFTC cannot erase tribal sovereignty or give companies permission to ignore a federal court," Siva said. "Tribal nations should not have to fight the federal government to enforce the same laws it is responsible for upholding. Pure and simple, prediction markets are illegal gaming. The Commission must withdraw this directive, and Congress must close the gambling loophole these companies continue to exploit."

About the California Nations Indian Gaming Association
The California Nations Indian Gaming Association is a non-profit association of 62 federally recognized tribal governments dedicated to the protection of tribal sovereignty and the inherent right of tribes to have gaming on Indian lands.

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