FIRST ON 3: Lobbying firm fires Lumbee Tribe

PEMBROKE, N.C.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– The Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina and Lewin International, LLC have announced their agreement to terminate their Recognition Services Agreement, under which Lewin International had undertaken to provide the Lumbee Tribe with resources for a focused and professional lobbying effort before Congress to secure full Federal recognition for the Tribe. Lewin International indicated that the agreement was terminated at its request. It said it felt it necessary to terminate the agreement due to the repeated public misrepresentations of the agreement and its terms by certain third parties, and the repeated dissemination of false, negative statements about Lewin International itself, all of which Lewin International felt was interfering with the efforts to communicate the Tribe’s message in Washington.

The Lumbee Tribe was recognized by the federal government in 1956, but was simultaneously denied the Federal benefits available to other recognized tribes. A bill currently pending before the U.S. Senate, and already passed by the House of Representatives, would confer full Federal recognition on the Lumbee Tribe, while imposing restrictions on its gaming authority that do not apply to other Federally-recognized tribes.

The parties had entered into the agreement because of the Tribe’s need to obtain a financing source for its lobbying effort. Lewin International agreed to obtain the lobbying services for the Tribe at its own cost and expense. Lewin would receive nothing in return unless the Tribe achieved Federal recognition in the current session of Congress. In that event, the Tribe could either engage Lewin International to provide assistance in the development of hotels, restaurants, shopping centers and other non-gaming facilities on Tribal Land, and to manage these facilities once completed, all on market terms as agreed, or instead pay Lewin International a cash recognition services fee. The agreement contained similar provisions that would apply only if Congress passed the recognition bill without restricting the Tribe’s right to develop a gaming facility, but this latter provision would not entitle Lewin International to receive any payment or other rights unless the Tribe actually elected to proceed to develop such a facility after conducting a referendum and satisfying all other requirements of the Tribe’s Constitution and all federal and state law. It was a misreading of this latter provision which led some critics to conclude, mistakenly, that the additional recognition services fee would be due to Lewin International merely as a result of the Tribe’s receipt of recognition without a gaming restriction.

“We continue to support the Lumbee Tribe’s just cause,” said Lewin. “It was a pleasure to have the opportunity to work with Chairman Swett and Former Chairman Goins, as well as many members of the Tribal Council, and I want to thank them all for their support. I certainly wish the Tribe all the best in its recognition efforts. It’s unfortunate that this campaign of misrepresentation has made it impossible for us to continue to work together at this time.”

INFORMATION FROM A NEWS RELEASE SENT TO THE WWAY NEWSCHANNEL 3 NEWSROOM…