New developments in PCB?
- Thread starter Matt J
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Here come the Seminoles .... and I'm not talking about the football team.
http://www.reuters.com/article/bondsNews/idUSB26625520071114
http://www.reuters.com/article/bondsNews/idUSB26625520071114
anybody see the news on this?
http://phoenix.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2007/11/12/daily29.html
http://phoenix.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2007/11/12/daily29.html
TooFarTampa
SoWal Insider
Thanks Swantree. From the article: "The agreement includes a disincentive for future gambling expansion in Florida. The state would forfeit its share of the tribe's revenue if such expansion occurs on non-tribal land, except at certain pari-mutual facilities in Broward and Miami-Dade counties."
The expanded gambling will be taking place on seven properties located on tribal lands.
Also, from this morning's St. Pete Times:
What kinds of casino games are legal now in Florida?
Poker is allowed at parimutuels (horse and dog tracks and jai alai frontons). Three Broward County racetracks got Las Vegas-style (Class III) slot machines after county voters approved a local option referendum in 2005.
The Seminole and Miccosukee Indians have bingo-based Class II machines and poker.
Florida-based gambling boats offer table games such as blackjack and roulette outside state waters, but they are illegal in the state.
Would the compact announced Wednesday lead to expanded gambling outside Indian casinos?
Not likely. Parimutuel owners argue that the deal, particularly the addition of new card games, will give the Seminoles an unfair competitive advantage. Some state lawmakers are talking about legislation to give them new games, like video lottery terminals. But House leaders oppose expanded gambling, and the Seminoles could cut off payments to the state if the devices are sanctioned.
It appears to me that any rumors of casino gambling in PCB are completely unfounded, and only being circulated in hopes of boosting the real estate market. The state is not going to expand gambling -- the House doesn't want it and the Senate is even more conservative.
Bay County voters would not have the right to vote gambling in themselves (not that they likely would). In 2004, a statewide referendum (that passed narrowly) allowed a vote on slot machines in Miami-Dade and Broward counties only. Miami-Dade residents voted down slots, Broward didn't..
What makes you think the Seminoles can't expand into other areas of the State? The Compact allows Indian gaming on "Indian Lands". For purposes of casino gaming, "Indian Lands" potentially has a very expansive meaning. Ever heard of a "far flung" Indian reservation. You might want to brush up on the phrase. For Indian gaming, three cases already exist where Indian gaming was permitted by the Feds on land acquired more for its market potential than any historical significance. BTW, expansion of gaming is never a disincentive for future expansion of gaming. Craps and Roulette was left out of the Compact not to appease the anti-gamblers (although it serves as a convenient rationale), but to leave the State a bargaining chip when the State violates the exclusivity clause, which it inevitably will.
TooFarTampa
SoWal Insider
Go ahead and read the compact. It specifically states that it applies only to the following seven locations:
Seminole Indian Casino - Brighton
Highway 721 ? Brighton Indian Reservation, Route 6 Box 611
Okeechobee, FL 34974
Seminole Indian Casino - Coconut Creek
5550 NW 40th St.
Coconut Creek, FL 33073
Seminole Indian Casino - Hollywood
4150 N. St. Rd. 7
Hollywood, FL 33021
Seminole Indian Casino - Immokalee
506 S. 1st Street
Immokalee, FL 34142
Seminole Indian Casino - Big Cypress
30013 Josie Billie Hwy.
Clewiston, FL 33440
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino - Hollywood
1 Seminole Way
Hollywood, FL 33314
Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino - Tampa
5223 N. Orient Rd.
Tampa, FL 33610
The compact also states that the above locations may be replaced by another facility on the same reservation, but that's the limit of what is permitted.
I DO need to "brush up" on the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988 ... but in the meantime, please link to some information about the three cases you refer to. I briefly looked up this issue (very briefly) a week or two ago, and from what I've read, the law is not going to allow for wholesale expansion in this manner. Though I would have to find those articles again ...
Take a look at where Indian gaming can be conducted "in theory". While the Compact mentions those specific facilities you describe, I believe it expressly permits gaming on "Indian Lands" which means any lands held in trust for the Indians including after-acquired lands which may or may not be contiguous to a reservation. There is even some question as to whether it might encompass land acquired outside of the home state. While Governor Crist might have some say on whether gaming occurs on those lands (if he hasn't already by consenting to gaming on "Indian Lands"), he seems more favorable to the Seminoles than his predecessor. http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/hrd/issinfo/gambind.htm#LAND
When the time is right, St Joe and Chief Cotton for Brains will "discover" that some of the "Great Northwest" is tribal land--they won't know exactly where it is until the new highway system gets built out.
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Hey TooFarTampa - thought I would bump this to remind you of the discussion back in November. Here's an article about the Senate passing a bill to expand gambling statewide. Watch the the Seminole Compact definition of gaming. Currently, it doesn't include craps and roulette, but it will if this bill becomes law. The Governor will claim that he no alternative but to permit craps and roulette or risk losing the 150 million dollars because the Legislature violated the exclusivity of the Seminoles. http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/florida/sfl-flfslots0314sbmar14,0,7418476.story
TooFarTampa
SoWal Insider
You definitely called this one!
I skimmed an item about this today and thought of this very thread. Interesting lead to the story you linked: "Covetously eyeing the hundreds of millions it could bring into state coffers, the Florida Senate on Thursday approved a plan to expand gambling statewide..."
I don't think it matters much to the House that Rubio disapproves since he is a lame duck anyway, right?
So if Crist keeps upping the ante, so to speak, what legal grounds does he have to allow the Seminoles to expand beyond those seven locations? It would still be illegal. Am I correct that such a decision would have to go to the ballot? The economy would really have to be in the toilet for the voters to agree to a large scale gambling expansion, not that we are not headed there quickly...