In 2004, Oklahoma voters approved SQ 712 which allows the state to enter into state-tribal compacts to give tribes the exclusive right to operate gaming facilities in exchange for an exclusivity fee. These fees range from 4 to 6 percent for electronic games and 10 percent for table games. Since then Oklahoma has grown to become the third largest market for gaming activity in the country. Below are some charts that show how Oklahoma’s gaming activity has changed over time and how it compares to the rest of the nation. 

In 2016 Oklahoma’s total gross gaming revenue was $4.5 billion when adjusted for inflation, trailing only Nevada and California. Below is a chart of the top 10 states with the most revenue from gaming activity in 2016.

Sources: American Gaming Association, “State of the States: The AGA Survey of the Casino Industry,” 2016; Casino City’s Indian Gaming Industry Report, 2018; CPI inflation calculator, Bureau of Labor Statistics

Oklahoma’s gaming activity has become one of the largest areas of the economy. In 2016 gaming activity made up 2.5 percent of Oklahoma’s total GDP, trailing only Nevada.

Sources: American Gaming Association, “State of the States: The AGA Survey of the Casino Industry,” 2016; Casino City’s Indian Gaming Industry Report, 2018; Bureau of Economic Analysis Annual GDP by State

Since 2004 when the state compacts were first approved, Oklahoma’s revenue from tribal gaming activity has grown almost 200 percent. During that time gaming activity increased from 1.01 percent of total state GDP to 2.51 percent.

Sources: Casino City’s Indian Gaming Industry Report, 2018; Bureau of Economic Analysis Annual GDP by State ; CPI inflation calculator, Bureau of Labor Statistics

Since 2004, no other state has had a faster growth rate of tribal gaming revenue than Oklahoma. At 197 percent Oklahoma is 82 percent higher than the next closest state, Florida.

Sources: Casino City’s Indian Gaming Industry Report, 2018; CPI inflation calculator, Bureau of Labor Statistics