Hoskin: State’s tentative agreement on tobacco compact “leaves us a bit hopeful”

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – The Cherokee Nation’s Principal Chief says he’s glad the State of Oklahoma and Governor Kevin Stitt came to an agreement with the tribe this week on a new tobacco sales compact, but says more work needs to be done for the state to fully repair its relationship with his tribe.

Earlier this week, the Cherokee Nation announced it had come to a tentative agreement with the State of Oklahoma on a new compact over tobacco sales on the tribe’s reservation for the next 10 years.

Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. has been outspoken in his criticism of Governor Kevin Stitt’s handling of the state’s relationship with his and other tribes.

“Without question, there's tension between the tribes and the governor,” Hoskin said at news conference earlier this week. “Kevin Stitt, really doesn't see a world in which tribes are able to exercise meaningful tribal sovereignty.”

However, Hoskin said he is willing to give the governor credit for coming to the table and getting the tentative agreement on the tobacco compact signed this week.

“I think he saw the wisdom in extending renewing, though, a tobacco compact,” Hoskin said. “So that leaves us a bit hopeful.”

Renewed agreements between the state and tribe over several compacts—including the tobacco compact—have sat in limbo for months as negotiations broke down.

The struggle mostly centers on how much land the state is willing to classify as “Indian land.”

Last year, Governor Stitt vetoed two bills that would have extended the tribe’s current compacts for tobacco sales and vehicle tags another year.

“What they're hoping to do is turn 42% of our state into a reservation,” Stitt said last July. “I will not give an inch.”

In 2023, Stitt sent tribal leaders what they described as a “demand letter” offering his terms for a new compact.

State legislators called for Stitt to sit down with the tribes, and even voted to extend the negotiation period for the state to come to an agreement on new compacts to the end of 2024.

“These leaders want to talk directly to other leaders,” said Oklahoma House Speaker Charles McCall (R-Atoka) in November. “That was made very clear. I think, for the governor, he could pivot and move that way.”

Hoskin says he’s not sure what exactly prompted the state to finally come to that agreement on the tobacco compact this week, but he’s glad it happened.  

“I'd like to think that the wisdom of continuing that the continuity with respect to tobacco compacting won the day,” Hoskin said. “And I give the governor credit for recognizing that.”

Hoskin says there is still much more work to do to repair the state’s relationship with his tribe.

As it stands right now, the state still hasn’t come to an agreement to renew compacts surrounding tribal vehicle tags.

“We're working with the governor to extend this tag compact and we need to because here's what's at stake: millions of dollars for public schools, for public safety, for roads and bridges,” Hoskin said. “If you just look at Tulsa County, for example, this compact means that Tulsa County schools get about $1.7 million every single year. Here, in a few weeks, we'll issue checks totaling more than $7.5 million to schools all over northeast Oklahoma. If the compact goes away, that's all at risk. In fact, those Tulsa dollars go away. So our message to the governor is let's get a renewed compact. Let's keep this really wonderful document going. If the governor and the Cherokee Nation do not come to terms, we will be back to the legislature to say we've got to be there for schools, we've got to be there for law enforcement, we've got to be there for infrastructure.”