Tax Burdens and Tribal Sovereignty: The Prohibition on Lavish and Extravagant Benefits Under the Tribal General Welfare Exclusion

This article examines a portion of a relatively new federal tax statute, the Tribal General Welfare Exclusion (TGWE), that allows qualified individuals an exclusion from gross income for payments received from American Indian/Alaska Native tribes for any Indian general welfare benefit. Indian general welfare benefits are payments made to tribal members by the tribe pursuant to an Indian tribal government program for the promotion of general welfare, such as for health, education, or housing. The TGWE is intended, in part, to promote participation in American Indian tribal cultural and ceremonial practices. To that end, Indian general welfare benefits include payments made for participation in cultural or ceremonial activities for the transmission of tribal culture. The statute expressly states that excludable welfare benefits cannot be lavish and extravagant, but it does not define what lavish and extravagant means. This article makes the following contributions: It is the first piece of legal scholarship to examine the new TGWE, and it provides in depth description and explanation of the provision. The article also brings attention to federal tax enforcement on certain transfers between tribes and tribal members, particularly those transfers that occur in the scope of tribes engaging in cultural, ceremonial, or religious practices. This article also analyzes a particular limitation in the language of the TGWE, that transfers from tribes to tribal members may not be lavish and extravagant, and makes policy recommendations as to the interpretation of that language as the IRS and consulted tribes move forward with interpretative guidance. Finally, on a broader level, this article seeks to contribute to the greater conversations about tribal self-determination and self-governance and the role federal tax law plays as an instrument of those federal Indian policie

The Industry and Policy Context for Digital Games for Empowerment and Inclusion:Market Analysis, Future Prospects and Key Challenges in Videogames, Serious Games and Gamification

The effective use of digital games for empowerment and social inclusion (DGEI) of people and communities at risk of exclusion will be shaped by, and may influence the development of a range of sectors that supply products, services, technology and research. The principal industries that would appear to be implicated are the 'videogames' industry, and an emerging 'serious games' industry. The videogames industry is an ecosystem of developers, publishers and other service providers drawn from the interactive media, software and broader ICT industry that services the mainstream leisure market in games, The 'serious games' industry is a rather fragmented and growing network of firms, users, research and policy makers from a variety of sectors. This emerging industry is are trying to develop knowledge, products, services and a market for the use of digital games, and products inspired by digital games, for a range of non-leisure applications. This report provides a summary of the state of play of these industries, their trajectories and the challenges they face. It also analyses the contribution they could make to exploiting digital games for empowerment and social inclusion. Finally, it explores existing policy towards activities in these industries and markets, and draws conclusions as to the future policy relevance of engaging with them to support innovation and uptake of effective digital game-based approaches to empowerment and social inclusion.JRC.J.3-Information Societ

GameSense Interactions: Improving Guest Experience with Responsible Gaming

How do conversations about responsible gambling impact the employee and guest experience? With the implementation of GameSense and its strong ties to our loyalty marketing program, M life Rewards, MGM Resorts endeavors to answer that very question. Through focus groups research, interaction surveys, and on the ground conversations with casino employees, we are learning a lot about our innovative approach to responsible gambling. During this lightning talk, Director of Responsible Gaming, Richard Taylor, will provide a typical GameSense interaction, and a very brief summary about GameSense and why it\u27s critically important to make RG a focal point of guest experience

Working as one: a road map to disaster resilience for Australia

This report offers a roadmap for enhancing Australia’s disaster resilience, building on the 2011 National Strategy for Disaster Resilience. It includes a snapshot of relevant issues and current resilience efforts in Australia, outlining key challenges and opportunities. Overview Natural disasters cause widespread disruption, costing the Australian economy $6.3 billion per year, and those costs are projected to rise incrementally to$23 billion by 2050. With more frequent natural disasters with greater consequences, Australian communities need the ability to prepare and plan for them, absorb and recover from them, and adapt more successfully to their effects. Enhancing Australian resilience will allow us to better anticipate disasters and assist in planning to reduce losses, rather than just waiting for the next king hit and paying for it afterwards. This report offers a roadmap for enhancing Australia’s disaster resilience, building on the 2011 National Strategy for Disaster Resilience. It includes a snapshot of relevant issues and current resilience efforts in Australia, outlining key challenges and opportunities. The report sets out 11 recommendations to help guide Australia towards increasing national resilience, from individuals and local communities through to state and federal agencies

QCAA 2015 Queensland election platform

Introduction Alcohol is more affordable, more available and more heavily promoted than ever before. It is available around the clock, seven days a week, is promoted relentlessly and is as cheap as 35 cents per standard drink. This is concerning because the sale, promotion and availability of alcohol contributes to the excessive consumption of alcohol and its associated harms. In June 2014, the Queensland Government released the Safe Night Out Strategy (the Strategy) in an effort to reduce alcohol-related violence in Queensland’s pubs, clubs and bars. The Strategy has a focus on education campaigns, increased police powers and introducing ‘safe night precincts’. However the Strategy does not include measures proven to reduce alcohol harms, including reducing the availability of alcohol through trading hour and density controls. The Strategy also focuses predominantly on on-licence premises, in select parts of Queensland. The most effective measures to reduce alcohol harms are well known. These include addressing the price of alcohol, reducing the availability of alcohol, and restricting its advertising and promotion to reduce exposure, particularly to young people. The Queensland Government should introduce the most effective strategies available to reduce harm, and support effective strategies at the Commonwealth Government level. Queensland needs a comprehensive evidence-based plan for all Queenslanders that is based on the evidence of what works to reduce alcohol harms. This plan needs to look not just at on-licence premises such as pubs and clubs, but also off-licence premises such as packaged liquor outlets, where Australians purchase 80 per cent of their alcohol. The density of off-licence premises is particularly important given these contribute to violence including domestic violence, as well as long-term health harms. QCAA has developed such a plan. It includes evidence-based solutions to reduce alcohol harms across Queensland. The plan acknowledges that no single approach will be effective in reducing alcohol harms and that a range of evidence-based strategies are needed to achieve the best possible outcomes. The overwhelming majority of Queenslanders believe that Australia has a problem with alcohol (78 per cent) and that more needs to be done to address alcohol harms (77 per cent). Despite this, they do not think that these problems will be addressed anytime soon, with 81 per cent believing that alcohol-related problems will worsen, or at best remain the same over the next five to ten years. Queenslanders also think that alcohol companies (69 per cent), clubs and pubs (68 per cent) and Governments (65 per cent) are not doing enough to address alcohol harms. Queensland cannot continue to disregard the evidence. Queenslanders need a strategic approach to action on alcohol that incorporates the most effective strategies to reduce harm, rather than the scattergun approach that we have seen so far that employs the least effective strategies. QCAA calls on an incoming Queensland Government to address the availability, price and promotion of alcohol through state based legislation and regulation. QCAA also calls on the Queensland Government to support policies at the Commonwealth Government level to reduce alcohol harms, including reforming alcohol taxation and introducing mandatory health warning labels on all alcohol products

Sustaining Arts and Culture in Buffalo Niagara

Like all nonprofits, arts and culture organizations are not immune to the inevitable shifts in fiscal health due to trends in the region’s economy and in charitable giving. In recent years, however, the shifts have turned sharply downward due to budget crises for one of the industry’s most important supporters – local government. With cherished arts and cultural assets in Erie and Niagara Counties struggling to make ends meet, the region is suddenly forced to confront a series of provocative questions. With increasingly limited resources, how can the region sustain an industry integral to Buffalo Niagara’s economy and quality of life? Can the region fill this gap while providing a higher degree of funding predictability? If not, how will it be determined which organizations are left to falter? If so, whose responsibility is it to bridge the fiscal chasm – the public sector, the private sector, the cultural institutions themselves, or all of the above

AlterNATIVE Economic Development Models For Native American Tribes: A Case Study on the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California

Federal Indian policies which have contributed to the extensive architecture of tribal land regulations have rendered Native American reservations unfit to fully realize economic development potential. With extremely limited investment capital, Tribes can only afford investments in industries with very high marginal returns. Indian Gaming is one such industry in which some tribes have a competitive advantage. The emergence of Indian Gaming and the subsequent federal (and existing) policies have resulted in dire political and social externalities for Native American people. Political consequences related to gaming policies such as the Indian Gaming Reorganization Act (IGRA), have resulted in the compromise of sovereignty. In general, tribes who are allowed to and chose to game have become subjected to state, county and municipal jurisdiction, contrary to age old Federal Indian Policy which established Tribes' sovereign rights. Local Economic Alternative Development Strategies (LEADS) serve as an alternative model for development on reservations. LEADS can shape economic development trajectories that are sensitive to the tenets of sovereignty and self determination. This thesis examines the utility of LEADS in guiding tribal economic development for Native American reservations. Specifically, this thesis is a case study of the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California, a Native American Tribe located around the center of Lake Tahoe and positioned at the borders of two adjoining states. To examine the potential of the LEADS model on the Washoe reservation, I conducted surveys and community interviews and utilized a combination of secondary data. The results yielded the foundation of this thesis which exemplifies alternative economic development models that protect Native American sovereignty and self-determination while offering stable economic ends

Addressing the cyber safety challenge: from risk to resilience

Addressing the cyber safety challenge: from risk to resilience describes the cyber safety issues emerging from a range of technology trends, how different populations are using technologies and the risks they face, and how we can effectively respond to each group’s unique cyber safety needs. Written by the University of Western Sydney for Telstra Corporation Ltd, the report advocates for continuing to move cyber safety from a ‘risk and protection’ framework to one that focuses on building digital resilience, as well as fostering trust and confidence in the online environment. To do this we need to: Address the needs of populations often neglected by current policies and programs – including adults, seniors, parents, and small to medium enterprises Continue to build the digital literacy skills of all populations, because digital literacy strongly influences users’ ability to engage safely online – this is best achieved by a hands-on learning approach Keep risk in perspective – the risks and benefits of digital participation go hand in hand Broaden the focus from awareness-raising to long-term behaviour change. As digital technologies become further integrated into the everyday lives of Australians, users are potentially exposed to greater risks. However, the risks and benefits of digital participation go hand in hand. The challenge, therefore, is to support users to minimise the risks without limiting their digital participation and their capacity to derive the full benefits of connectivity. If Australians are to benefit as either consumers or providers of online services and products in the e-commerce environment, consumer safety and trust need to be improved. Cyber safety needs to be considered against a transforming backdrop of technology trends, products and practices. While the rise of social media has tended to dominate recent debate and developments in cyber safety, particularly in relation to young people, a range of other trends is also shaping how users engage online, the risks they potentially face in the new media landscape, and the strategies used to address them. These trends include the rise of user generated content and content sharing platforms; the uptake of mobile technologies and, in particular, the adoption of smartphones; cloud computing; platform integration and single sign-on mechanisms; and the rise of GPS and location based services