The liquor tax on alcoholic beverages sold within the Osage Nation jurisdiction will increase after the Ninth ON Congress voted to amend the tax charge to 7% during the second special session.
The 5% liquor tax charged on alcohol purchases has remained in effect since before the ON reformed government started in 2006. It is published in the Federal Register under the “Osage Tribe Liquor Control Ordinance.” The tax increase will apply to alcoholic beverages sold in establishments on Nation-owned trust land, which includes the seven Osage Casinos and two convenience stores attached to two of those properties.
During the November special session, Congress unanimously passed bill ONCA 25-01 (sponsored by Congresswoman Jodie Revard), which sought “to amend the Liquor Control Ordinance to increase the tax up to 7%.” This is the second time Congress visited a bill to increase the liquor tax as a 2023 bill was approved, however, the more recent bill cleans up ordinance language as it too will need to be published in the Federal Register to take effect.
The Congressional Commerce, Gaming and Land Committee initially considered the bill on Nov. 18 where Revard said ONCA 25-01 contains more edits to the language and “the original bill had a couple of misspellings,” which needed to be addressed before the ordinance language is sent to the Federal Register for publishing.
Revard said the latest revisions to the ordinance also come at the request of BIA Osage Agency Superintendent Adam Trumbly who wrote to Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear on the recommendations.
An earlier bill (ONCA 23-53 also sponsored by Revard) to increase the liquor tax was considered and passed in the 2023 Hun-Kah Session, but the bill was vetoed by Standing Bear over concerns the amended law would be effective before the Department of Interior’s approval as the law pertains to trust land. The bill received a veto override vote by Congress after Revard said the Nation’s Tax Commission said it would not enforce the increased liquor tax ordinance until after the revised law is published in the Federal Register.
Revard sponsored the liquor tax increase at the request of the Nation’s Tax Commission and its director Jennifer Oberly visited with the commerce committee on the proposed increase during the 2023 Hun-Kah Session. Also during that session, Congress approved a separate bill (ONCA 23-52) that increased the Nation’s sales tax and hotel lodging tax rates which are now also 7% respectively.
“It’s been at 5% since 2006, so it’s been stagnant,” Oberly said of the liquor tax increase. “And again, this extra tax is going onto the consumers at the gas stations, those who are buying the beer and alcohol at the casinos … (we’re) raising our tax base to become more comparative to what others around us are.”
Bill ONCA 25-01 passed with a 12-0 vote on Nov. 19 and Assistant Principal Chief RJ Walker signed the bill on behalf of Standing Bear who was absent during the special session.