It may now be as late as mid-September before District Court Judge Lonny Suko decides whether or not the State of Washington may take action against Yakama Nation cigarette retailers to enforce cigarette tax laws.
Suko issued a temporary restraining order Sept. 12 last year preventing any enforcement action after the Yakama Nation and the Yakama Nation Commerce Association filed suit seeking a permanent injunction.
In his order granting the temporary injunction, Suko set a date of Jan. 30 to hear the merits of the suit.
Washington Assistant Attorney General Heidi Irvin said in an email message Monday, however, that in December last year, the two sides in the suit agreed that more time was needed to prepare for the bench trial.
The court granted an April date, but in the last few weeks, the two sides agreed that even more time was needed and have petitioned Suko to move the date to Sept. 10 and 11.
Irvin said she expected a ruling on the motion very soon, but at press time the judge had not agreed to the September date.
The suit was the second filed in 2008 related to the cigarette tax issue with the tribe.
Richard “Kip” Ramsey, listed in court documents as the vice-president of the Yakama Nation Retailers Association, sued the state department of revenue in Tribal Court to prevent implementation of a tax compact negotiated with tribal officials to replace the compact enacted and signed by the tribe in 2004.
Ramsey claimed that according to tribal law, the new compact could not be implemented until it had been approved by the tribe’s General Council.
The new compact was negotiated over a period of about a year, during which time the original compact was still in effect.
But shortly after Ramsey’s suit was filed, the state officially terminated the old cigarette compact and said it intended to enforce current state tax law that makes untaxed cigarettes contraband and subject to seizure when sold to non-Indians.  
Despite the prospect of enforcement action, however, tribal officials said they would not enter into another tax compact with the state.
Suit was then filed in District Court to prevent the state from enforcing the requirement for a tax compact.
All taxes collected under either of the compacts went directly to the tribe, to be used for a variety of social services.
Suko’s temporary injunction did require that cigarettes sold by tribal retailers bear the Yakama Nation tax stamp, but did not set a tax rate.