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California Tribes Sue to Stop Gambling Initiative

SACRAMENTO, California – As reported by the L.A. Times: "Indian tribes that own casinos filed a suit Tuesday, urging that the California Supreme Court thwart a proposed ballot initiative that threatens the tribes' state monopoly on slot machines.

"Calling the proposed initiative a 'fraud on the voters,' the tribes contend in their petition that the measure violates two state constitutional provisions, including one that states a ballot measure cannot contain more than one subject. The petition also alleges that the measure violates a prohibition against specific businesses' benefiting directly from ballot measures they sponsor.

"…In a third prong of their challenge, tribes say the initiative, which would create a state constitutional amendment, violates federal law governing Indian tribes and their casinos.

"The initiative would require that tribes with casinos pay 25%, or more than $1 billion, of their gambling profits to state and local governments and comply with an array of other provisions.

"…The initiative states that all 64 California tribes must agree to the measure's provisions. If any tribe refused, according to the initiative, the card rooms and racetracks would divide 30,000 slot machines and pay a third of their winnings — about $1 billion a year — to local law enforcement, firefighting and education-related programs…"

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