Economics Resource Group

In 1998 the Economics Resource Group, Inc. (ERG), a consulting firm, presented a report to the National Gambling Impact Study Commission that summarized ERG’s analysis of the economic and social impact of legalized gambling on American Indian reservations. Portions of the report are excerpted below. In them, ERG maintains that Indian gaming has positively impacted American Indian communities by reducing unemployment and increasing revenues to tribal governments. ERG notes that it is unrealistic to expect the revenues from tribal gaming to immediately solve the enormous social and economic problems faced by many American Indian communities. Nevertheless, ERG concludes that, on the whole, tribes that have opened casinos are better off than they were before the spread of Indian casinos.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to ERG, as of 1995, what was the...