In 2016, the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation, in southwestern Washington State, began selling craft spirits and beer at a restaurant in their Lucky Eagle casino. But when the Chehalis wanted to start making their own hooch, the federal government said no.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs informed the tribe that federal law prohibits the building of a distillery on tribal grounds. The Chehalis would have to continue to purchase spirits from producers off the reservation.

Small-scale distilling is a booming business, providing much-needed jobs and revenue for state and local governments. So why are Indian tribes legally prevented from joining in?

This distilling prohibition originates from an 1834 law regulating trade on Indian lands. The law threatened fines and asset forfeiture for anyone who sold, possessed or made strong drink of any kind on tribal grounds. In drafting the law, Congress appears to have been partly motivated by concerns over non-Indian settlers dodging federal alcohol taxes by setting up distilleries on tribal grounds. But Congress could have dealt with this matter straightforwardly by taxing alcohol production on the reservations.