 Newsletter Signup
Stay informed with the
NEW Casino City Times newsletter! Related Links
|
Gaming News
California gaming agreements approved3 October 2007CALIFORNIA -- As reported by the Desert Sun: "The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved a resolution supporting recently enacted gaming agreements between the state and three Riverside County Indian tribes. Without comment, the supervisors voted 5-0 in favor of the resolution - introduced by board Chairman John Tavaglione - that hails the compacts' monetary benefits and blasts an effort to put the agreements before voters on the Feb. 5 primary election ballot. Last month, state lawmakers ratified new gaming agreements between the state and the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians in Palm Springs, Morongo Band of Mission Indians in Banning, Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians in Temecula and Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation in El Cajon. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger negotiated the deals last year and said the potential payoff to the state would be up to $82 million a year in contributions to the General Fund. According to his office, California's part of the windfall will come from profits on new slot machines. Under the compacts, the tribes will expand their total inventory of slots by 17,000, setting aside 15 to 25 percent of "net win" from each new machine for the state. The "No on the Unfair Gambling Deals" campaign accuses the tribes of inflating their profit estimates and expanding gambling operations beyond what Californians ever intended when the framework for casino-style gambling on reservations was established in 1998. The campaign launched a petition drive last month to effectively convert the gaming agreements into five separate referendums on the Feb. 5 ballot, giving voters a chance to overturn or approve the compacts. "I don't think the tribes believe their deals will stand up to voter scrutiny," Al Lundeen, the campaign's chief spokesman, said last week. "These are sweetheart deals for them, but not the rest of California. We think they need to go back to the drawing board and start again." Membership in the "No on the Unfair Gambling Deals" camp includes the Bay Meadows and Hollywood Park racetracks, Citizens for Local Government Accountability, the UNITE HERE union, the Pala Band of Mission Indians and California Indian Tribes For Fair Play. San Diego County-based Pala and another tribal organization, the United Auburn Indian Community, each have contributed $500,000 to the effort to defeat the compacts - an effort that unites them with longtime foes, including racetrack operators, who have sought the right to install slot machines at their facilities. The resolution approved by Riverside County supervisors criticizes "certain special interest groups (who) are attempting to repeal the new agreements" and highlights how the "gaming agreements require increased cooperation and coordination with local governments through mitigation agreements." "These ... agreements will include reasonable compensation from tribes to the county and impacted cities for: law enforcement, fire protection, emergency medical services and any other public services required as a result of new gaming-related projects," the resolution states. According to the resolution, by providing California with roughly $9 billion over the next two decades, the gaming compacts will help alleviate the state's budget woes and "adequately fund public safety, health care, education, road improvements and other public services." |