Posted on 02/16/2006 8:51:00 PM PST by calcowgirl
Gov. Schwarzenegger has angered Legislative Democrats, Republicans and the Department of the Interior by negotiating gaming compacts with Indian tribes to run casinos off reservation land. But with rumors in the Capitol that another major compact deal is imminent, Sen. Dean Florez, D-Shafter, chairman of the Senate Governmental Organization Committee, is trying to stop the new compact before it is introduced.
The new gaming deal with the North Fork tribe in Madera County has some powerful proponents-including Las Vegas gaming interests. Among them is Station Casinos, a Nevada gaming company that has a deal to manage the North Fork tribe's casino, if it is ever built. Station's lobbyist, Darius Anderson, is personal friends with Schwarzenegger's chief of staff, Susan Kennedy. The two vacation in Italy together, and Anderson was the best man at Kennedy's commitment ceremony.
The proposal also has an impressive list of opponents, ranging from U.S. Senators to Democratic and Republican legislators to the Secretary of the Interior.
Florez's measure, SR 20, would prohibit the Senate from taking up any compact with a tribe that does not already have federally recognized lands approved for gaming by the federal government.
The measure is aimed at halting the off-reservation casino the governor is rumored to be negotiating with the North Fork tribe to build a 2,000-machine casino and 200-room hotel, just off Highway 99 near the city of Madera.
Last year, Florez introduced a bill, SB 1013, that would have required a local referendum on any off-reservation gaming compact. That measure has stalled in the Legislature, and been moved to the inactive file.
But Florez said there is a greater policy issue at stake-stemming the growth of gaming off Indian lands across California.
"He sees it as a revenue source, just like any other commercial venture," said Florez. "I've been consistent in saying I don't care what the deal is, we want to see that the tribe has land in trust before we ratify a compact. We're trying to tame the playroom for all of the lobbyists involved in this."
"The larger interests here are Las Vegas entities who want to get a foothold [in California]," said Florez. "That concerns me."
The governor's office said they will not comment on on-going negotiations on specific compacts, but the proposed North Fork deal has been widely reported.
Sen. Jim Battin, R-La Quinta, an opponent of off-reservation gaming, said he had heard the administration was going to unveil the compact last week, but pulled back.
Among those calling on the governor to hold off on new off-reservation gaming deals is Interior Secretary Gale Norton. In May, the department rejected an off-reservation compact from the Warm Springs tribe in Oregon.
In a letter explaining their decision to Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski, deputy secretary James Cason wrote: "Only after the tribes have acquired the (land) into trust will the department consider the terms and conditions of a timely submitted compact."
Days before the letter, Gov. Schwarzenegger issued a proclamation of his own, outlining the conditions under which he would enter into agreements with tribes to allow them to run casinos off reservation land.
Among the criteria, the governor said, the land could not be in an "urbanized area," the "local juristiction" of the proposed casino must support the project and the tribe must "demonstrate that the affected local community supports the project."
But critics of the governor's gaming expansion plans say those criteria are nebulous and malleable. The North Fork underscores some of the debate over the governor's proclamation.
In August, Madera County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 to support the North Fork tribe's gaming proposal, which would include a 2,000 machine casino and a 200-room hotel. But opponents of the plan are circulating a poll that shows 60 percent of voters in Madera oppose the proposal, and 68 percent of Fresno voters are opposed. Proponents say they have their own surveys showing local support for the casino.
"He was creative in setting the criteria," said Battin of the governor's proclamation. "But off-reservation gaming goings against the spirit of (the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act) and the spirit of Prop. 5 and Prop. 1A. When Californians voted to allow tribal gaming, the deal was that it would only be on tribal land."
But Schwarzenegger spokesman Vince Sollitto said the governor has a very well-defined set of criteria for any off-reservation compact. And, he said, the administration has "inherently" more leverage when negotiating with a tribe that does not have federally-approved gaming land.
In September, Schwarzenegger announced a new pair of compacts that would allow the Big Lagoon Rancheria tribe from Humboldt County and the Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeno Indians to run two casinos in Barstow, on the road between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. Sollitto said those compacts were negotiated in part because Big Lagoon agreed not to build on environmentally sensitive land, and to settle a lawsuit the tribe had against the state restricting development on their land.
The Big Lagoon tribe had run into environmental opposition to a casino on their land because it borders a state ecological preserve. In his announcement of the deal, the governor hailed the compacts as "a creative solution for avoiding the construction of a casino on California's coast and alongside a state ecological preserve."
The compacts have run into opposition from Democrats and Republicans alike in the Legislature, and are said to have only an outside chance at being approved.
Unlike the Big Lagoon and Los Coyotes deals, the proposed North Fork gaming site is only about 40 miles from the tribe's reservation. But it is located on a prime piece of real estate, right along Highway 99 near the city of Madera.
Among those opposed to the North Fork deal is the Picayune Rancheria of the Chukchansi Indians, which runs a casino in nearby Oroville.
Ms. Willie Brown Kennedy sure does get around. Or is it Susan Coelho Kennedy?
I read last month that the states are going after the internet sales (again). Several years ago, California demanded that the internet sales companies turn over the list of names/addresses of people buying their cigarettes and sent them tax bills. They only partially succeeded. Now, they are going after the suppliers (Phillip Morris, etc), transporters (DHL, etc), processors (credit card companies)... anyone.
http://www.chieftain.com/business/1138355789/6
If folks live near a reservation, I guess the state won't have any way to get at them. I'm sure they'll try though!
LOL. I did know that, but it didn't register when I read it. It just goes to show how ridiculous this whole thing has become.
This is no longer about Indian Casinos. They are just shells for the same interests that run Las Vegas, Atlantic City, etc. And the same families that control those interests are lining up with the various tribes.
Just makes me all misty eyed. You really know how to tug on the heartstrings, cg...
What will we learn next about your man Susan the K...
Can't get enough? Here ya go! (get a box of kleenex!)
CA: Show Me The Money (Susan Kennedy wanted $250K a year at new job)
Typical limousine liberal. Her heart bleeds for "the poor" only after making sure her own nest has been properly feathered. Just one more left wing phony. Should get along great with our own Austrian socialist, Arnold the Magnificent.
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