Breaking News!!

PEOPLE ARE TALKING: Editorials and letters to the editor about the casino from Bay Area newspapers.

WA - CASINO FOES CALL FOR NEW FEIS AS BIA, TRIBE DEFEND PROCESS: "Critics say the final federal document outlining the impacts of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe's initital reservation and $510 million casino complex near La Center is a whitewash that doesn't address their objections. Clark County called the statement “unreliable” and “inadequate.” “This Final EIS, unfortunately, does not adequately describe the alternatives or their impacts and provides an unreliable and inadequate source of information for decision making,” the county’s Web site concluded. A City of Vancouver official said the tribe’s business plan vastly overstated the need of tribal members. “When you start off with the wrong assumptions, it’s quite easy that a huge amount of the document will no longer be valid,” said Vancouver Assistant City Attorney Brent Boger. “Basically, it has not addressed our concerns, and we’re going to let the Department of Interior know that.”

LOCAL - NEW DEVELOPMENTS ON ROHNERT PARK CASINO FRONT: "While a North Bay assemblyman introduced legislation this week that would require local approval of Indian casinos, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors approved an agreement with the Graton tribe that would prevent them from building a second casino in Sonoma or Marin counties. 'When they got their land taken into trust, we realized it didn’t limit them to this one time,' (Supervisor Mike) Kerns said. 'We began worrying about the future and that they might go into other areas in Sonoma and Marin counties...' " (Note: Did they just wake up one day and realize that!?! That's what we've been telling them and Marin County for 5 years!)

LOCAL - DEAL AIMS TO KEEP CASINOS OUT OF MARIN: "County supervisors unanimously approved an agreement with the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria on Tuesday that they believe will prevent the tribe from building a casino in Marin County. The deal would preclude the tribe from building any additional casinos in Marin or Sonoma counties, if its current plan for a 760,000-square-foot casino, hotel and entertainment center in Rohnert Park goes forward. Opponents of the project fear it would make congestion on Highway 101 significantly worse. In return, Marin supervisors pledged the county of Marin will not legally challenge the decision by the Bureau of Indian Affairs to allow the tribe to take into trust 254 acres in Rohnert Park. That is the land on which the casino will be built. Sonoma County's supervisors voted 4-0, with Supervisor Tim Smith absent, to ratify a similar agreement Tuesday. Huffman says the agreements will provide no real protection for either Marin or Sonoma against the threat of additional casino development by the Federated Indians." "It's really little more than a fig leaf, "Huffman said. "As one of the many huge ambiguities and giant loopholes, if economic conditions require the relocation of the Rohnert Park casino, then all bets are off.""

LOCAL - COUNTY, TRIBE DEAL ON FUTURE GROWTH: "Sonoma County supervisors and the Graton Indian tribe proposing a Rohnert Park casino are close to an agreement that will prohibit it from building a second casino and puts any other developments under county planning review.

Although the memorandum of understanding has no practical effect on the proposed casino and hotel, the county and Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria are edging closer to accommodations on measures to mitigate effects of the tribe's plans for the 254-acre site adjacent to Rohnert Park."

WILL THIS AGREEMENT PROTECT SONOMA COUNTY? CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

LOCAL - HUFFMAN WARNS ABOUT CASINO DEAL: "A deal that Marin County supervisors have negotiated with the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria regarding casino development in Marin and Sonoma is misguided, Assemblyman Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, said."

LOCAL - SUPERVISORS CRAFT DEAL TO LIMIT TRIBAL GAMING: "Marin County supervisors are considering a deal with the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria that would limit the tribe which is already seeking a casino in ROhnert Park, to one casino in either Marin or Sonoma county. In May, county officials learned that the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs had approved the tribe's 2006 application to take into trust 254 acres in Rohnert Park, according to a memorandum from Patrick Faulkner, the county's top lawyer. The bureau also said federal law requires it to accept into trust any Marin or Sonoma property upon application by the tribe - and that its actions are not subject to any public or environmental review."

LOCAL - PROPOSED CLOVERDALE CASINO SITE TRIPLES IN SIZE: "A public meeting on the proposed casino's upcoming environmental review is scheduled from 6 to 9 p.m. July 30 at the Cloverdale Citrus Fairgrounds. The Cloverdale Rancheria's proposed casino and hotel site has increased in size with the tribe more than tripling the acreage it acquired last year for the venture. The hotel/spa and casino resort could occupy up to 596,000 square feet, according to a tribal consultant. "In little Cloverdale? There goes our small-town charm," said City Councilman Gus Wolter, reacting Friday to the scale of the project. But if it does get built, Sonoma County could potentially have three of the largest Indian casinos in Northern California."

CA - JUDGE ORDERS NEW REVIEW OF ANNEXATION: "....U.S. District Judge Howard Matz's ruling in Los Angeles July 9 finds the fee-to-trust process flawed and supports citizens' rights to appeal." (Note: The lawsuit was brought by our friends in Santa Barbara County, Preservation of Los Olivos and Preservation of Santa Ynez when citizens near the new trust land acquisition of the Chumash were refused legal standing to protest by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.)

CA - SAFETY CONCERNS CHALLENGE SOBOBA EXPANSION PLANS: "Plans to expand its reservation and to build a new casino and hotel have drawn ire in nearby San Jacinto. Neighbors say they fear an expansion would increase crime and clog their streets. The city government has asked the Bureau of Indian Affairs to suspend the Soboba application. The federal Indian gambling regulatory agency has said it could be forced to close Soboba Casino if violence on the reservation is a threat to the gambling site's customers. The warning from the National Indian Gaming Commission followed two May shootouts with sheriff's deputies that left three tribal members dead. "

MA - GAMBLING INTERESTS PAY LOBBYISTS $2 MILLION: "Gambling interests spent at least $2 million on lobbyist salaries to sway the state Legislature in the past 18 months, a reflection of the debate over casinos reaching a fever pitch. The House defeated Gov. Deval Patrick's casino gambling bill in March, and the spending on lobbyists could have gone even higher had the debate lasted through the summer. Secretary of State William Galvin said the final tally could break a record for spending by gambling interests"

NY - JUDGE REJECTS INDIAN CASINO BEGUN IN BUFFALO: From the the NY Times, "A judge has ruled that the Seneca Indian Nation does not have the right to build a casino on a site where it has started construction. The judge, William M. Skretny, of Federal District Court, set aside a decision by the National Indian Gaming Commission that allowed the casino, ruling in favor of opponents who sued to stop it".

THE NATION - STINGY CREDIT MARKETS TEST U.S. CASINO PROJECTS: " The troubled credit markets that are creating problems for homebuyers, cities and other borrowers are also disrupting the capital-intensive casino industry - driving up construction costs and delaying, if not completely scuttling, projects."

There’s the regular way of doing business, and then there’s the Frank Parlato way. The feisty businessman said he will put slot machines on the ninth floor of a building he controls in downtown Niagara Falls near the Rainbow Bridge to protest the tax-free advantage the Seneca Nation has over all other businesspeople in Niagara Falls and Buffalo who have to pay sales and property taxes. Parlato has been battling the state for several years over the Seneca matter, noting he has to pay $1,000 a day in real estate taxes on his building, while the Indians, who “operate a gold mine across the street, pay no taxes.”

LOCAL - CASINO LAWSUIT CITES STATE SOVEREIGNTY: "While a recent lawsuit filed against the U.S. Department of the Interior is meant to prevent a casino from being built in Rohnert Park, the (lawsuit) is based on a general contention regarding state land sovereignty throughout the country, rather than alleged unlawful activity by the (Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria)."

THE NATION - HOUSE VOTES DOWN CASINO PLAN: "The U.S. House of Representatives voted 298-121 Wednesday to reject the plan for casinos to be built in Romulus and Port Huron. The proposals were for casino contracts to go to the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewas and Bay Mills Indian Community. The Chippewa tribe would have received rights to build a casino in Romulus, while the Bay Mills tribe would have received the right to build one in Port Huron."

CA - TRIBE DENIES 50 MEMBERS PROFITS FROM CASINO: "A long-simmering dispute within a North County Indian band boiled over yesterday when the tribe withheld casino profit checks from about fifty people, claiming that one of their ancestors was adopted and that as a result, they're not really Indians. The San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians, which operates the recently expanded Valley View Casino, also fired several people from tribal jobs and leadership positions after questioning their membership and said it would evict them from homes on tribal land. "

CA - IMMIGRATION ATTORNEY ARRESTED AT SO-CAL INDIAN CASINO FOR ALLEGEDLY TAKING IMMIGRANTS' BRIBES: "An attorney for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and his wife were arrested on suspicion of accepting thousands of dollars from both legal and illegal immigrants in exchange for immigration benefits, authorities said. ICE Assistant Chief Counsel Constantine Peter Kallas, 38, and wife Maria Kallas, 39, both of Alta Loma, were arrested Thursday at the San Manuel Indian Bingo and Casino, where authorities believed they were accepting such a bribe, U.S. Attorney spokesman Thom Mrozek said in a statement."

NY - NEW YORK SUES OVER LAND TRUST DECISION: "Gov. David A. Paterson and Madison and Oneida counties have filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn the the Department of the Interior's May 22 decision to take 13,004 acres of land into trust for the Oneida Indian Nation.

Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo joined the governor's office in making the joint statement issued Thursday.
In that statement, Paterson and Cuomo said the suit will argue that the decision is unconstitutional because the state has continuously exercised jurisdiction over its lands since the adoption of the Constitution" and has never consented to the removal of lands from the state. Calling the decision "just the latest action from the secretary of the interior and the BIA that is not in the best interest of the state," Paterson said, "We simply can not allow this decision to stand as it will have a devastating effect on Madison and Oneida counties, and set a dangerous precedent for similar cases across the state."

WI - HOUSE VOTE KEY IN INDIAN CASINO BATTLE: "A House vote is set for Wednesday on legislation that would clear the way for Indian casinos in Port Huron and Romulus. The bills would let two Chippewa tribes -- Sault Ste. Marie and Bay Mills -- swap ancestral land they claim on the St. Mary River for casino sites. A fight over the legislation has dragged on more than five years."

CA - OFFICIALS WARN INDIAN BAND CASINO WOULD CLOSE IF VIOLENCE CONTINUES: "The National Indian Gaming Commission has warned a Riverside County Indian band that its casino could be closed in a "worst-case scenario" is violence continues...."Closure of the facility might be necessary" if violent incidents continue near the Soboba Casino, Gaming Commission Chairman Phil Hogen told the Riverside Press-Enterprise...The Soboba Band of Luiseno Indians has been embroiled in a jurisdictional falling-out with the local law enforcement agency, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, after the tribe cut payments for law enforcement on the reservation, home to a thriving casino...Since then, sheriff's deputies said they were ambushed twice in a week on the reservation, which occupies a hilly and rural section of land. Three tribal members were killed in the two incidents, prompting a warning from the sheriff's union earlier this month that the reservation casino might be unsafe."

OR - COURT ALLOWS CHALLENGE TO CASINO IN FLORENCE: "Opponents of a tribal casino in Florence have won court approval to challenge Gov. Ted Kulongoski over whether the governor's office can authorize casinos. The unanimous ruling was decided on mostly procedural grounds, sending it back to Lane County Circuit Judge Lana Rasmussen for new eharings in a legal battle that has lasted for more than a decade" Go People Against a Casino Town (PACT), the little engine that could !

OK - CITIZENS GROUP OPPOSES GROVE CASINO: "A group of Grove residents are working to prevent the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe from building its proposed $60 million casino at Grand Lake. Financial advisor Darrell Mastin serves as a spokesman for the )Seneca-Cayuga Tribe). Mastin says he envisions patrons ignoring other city businesses as they drive to and from the casino."

LOCAL - CASINO FOES SAY FEDS CAN'T SECURE LAND FOR TRIBE: ( Note: the Plaintiffs actually include Stop the Casino 101 Coalition and a number of private citizens.) "A Rohnert Park group has filed suit against the federal government, challenging its ability to take into trust land for a proposed Indian casino. The suit was filed by Stop the Casino 101 and contends the Department of the Interior violated the U.S. Constitution when it took into trust 254 acres of land for the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria. "The federal government is powerless to create a new state or sovereign nation within an existing state without the consent of the state," said Stephan Volker, the Oakland attorney who filed the suit."

LOCAL - LAWSUIT FILED TO STOP R.P. CASINO: "An East Bay attorney filed a federal lawsuit on Friday seeking to prevemt a proposed casino from being built in Rohnert Park. The lawsuit, filed by Stephan Volker in the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, challenges the recent decision by Carl Artman, former assistant secretary of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, to take the land into trust for the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria. The suit is being brougth against the Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne, not the FIGR nor its partner, Station Casinos. The suit cites constitutional issues surrounding federal land acquisitions in California and asserts that the casino in Rohnert Park would cause harm to the community and the plaintiffs, which include attorney Mike Healy and Michael Erickson, both of Petaluma, and Stop the Casino 101 Coalition. Healy is a former Petaluma city councilman."

NY - MADISON COUNTY TO CHALLENGE ONEIDA NATION LAND TO TRUST: "Madison County will join the state in challenging a federal decision to take more than 13,000 acres owned by the Oneida Indian Nation into trust and off the tax rolls. The Board of Supervisors passed a resolution tonight approving the lawsuit, which must be filed by June 19. County Attorney John Campanie said the state suit will include 20 arguments against the trust decision, which was issued by the Department of the Interior last month and solidified the nation's sovereignty by putting its land beyond local and state government control. Lawyer David Schraver said the grounds of the case will include constitutional challenges as well as arguments that the decision is arbitrary and capricious, exceeds the secretary of the interior's statutory authority and is an abuse of discretion.

RI - R.I. FILES ARGUMENTS IN NARANGASSETT TRUST LAND CASE: "Rhode Island Gov. Don Carcieri filed legal arguments Friday urging the U.S. Supreme Court to prevent the Narragansett Indian Tribe from removing a 31-acre lot from state control, a step that could help the tribe build a casino there."

THE NATION - TRIBE'S LAND PURCHASES ALARM COMMUNITIES: "On the East Coast, the Oneida Nation is trying to place 17,000 acres in central New York state into federal trust, yanking it from the tax rolls and making it independent territory. Also, tribes are buying land all up and down the state of California. "From an original 640 acres we've probably purchased more than 3,000 additional acres," said Adam Day, assistant tribal manager for the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, which is roughly as close to downtown San Diego as the Shakopee tribe is to downtown Minneapolis. "And what we do is, one by one we apply to bring [the land purchases] into trust. San Diego County always opposes us, as they do everyone else. But we are batting .1000, and we will have more - including a very big one - in the future. "And I could rattle off the names of two dozen others like us all up and down California. It's very common. Throw a dart at a map of California, and you'll hit one.""

LOCAL - POLITICAL RUMBLE FOR ZANE, WRIGHT: "Tuesday's election in Sonoma County's 3rd Supervisorial District cut the field in half, but the level of acrimony between the two surviving candidates seems destined to double in the runoff contest. That's because the unions and environmentalists behind Shirlee Zane and the business interests behind Sharon Wright see a golden opportunity on Nov. 4 to secure their voice on the county's governing board."

LOCAL - JOE NATION BEST BET FOR STATE SENATE: "Registered Democrats in Petaluma face a three-way choice in the June 3 primary on who will represent them in the race this fall for state Senate. Democratic incumbent Carol Migden is being challenged by former North Bay Assemblyman Joe Nation and current San Francisco Assemblyman Mark Leno. Leno remains the only candidate unwilling to take a strong position against casino development in Sonoma County. Joe Nation, by contrast, introduced a constitutional amendments as an assemblyman that would have put a moratorium on new casino development, and remains steadfastly opposed to the gargantuan development that would create a host of problems for Petaluma area residents, not the least of which would be extreme traffic congestion along Highway 101. He endorses statewide legislation that would require a local vote before the state could approve gaming compacts."

LOCAL - HUFFMAN OBJECTS TO CASINO DEAL: "Assemblyman Jared Huffman on Friday objected to plans by the federal government to take land into trust near Rohnert Park for development of an Indian casino. In a letter to Assistant Secretary of the Interior Carl Artman, Huffman said the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria cannot claim sovereignty over the 254 acres west of HIghway 101 and cannot conduct gaming there,"

LOCAL - NATION OBJECTS TO RP CASINO: "State Senate hopeful Joe Nation siad Wednesday it's not too late to stop the Las Vegas-style mega resort planned for Rohnert Park by the Federated Indians of the Graton Rancheria - and he's the only one of three candidates who's vowed to fight it. Standing shoulder-to-shoulderwith casino opponents (Pastor Chip Worthington, Rohnert Park Planning Commissioner Susan Hollingsworth Adams and Rohnert Park City Councilwoman Pamela Stafford) near the 254 acre Wilfred Avenue site, Nation said it's irresponsible for Democratic primary rivals Sen. Carole Migden and Assemblyman Mark Leno, both of San Francisco, to suggest there is nothing that can be done. 'It's clear to me we have option here, ' said Nation, a former assemblyman and Sonoma resident."

LOCAL - CLOVERDALE COUNCIL OPPOSES CASINO: "Cloverdale City Council members on Wednesday essentially said "no dice" to a casino in their town. On a 4-0 vote, council members passed a resolution opposing the Cloverdale Rancheria's plans to build a Las Vegas-style casino at the southern end of town, next to Highway 101. The resolution opposes the casino on a number of grounds, beginning with its "detrimental effect" on the small-town atmosphere Cloverdale prides itself on."

LOCAL - TRIBE WANTING TO BUILD CASINO GRANTED 354 ACRES IN BAY AREA: :In a major step toward a Las Vegas-style mega-casino in the Bay Area, federal officials on Wednesday announced a decision to take 254 acres into trust for an American Indian tribe just off Highway 101 in Sonoma County...the decision Wednesday stems from a controversial act of Congress, not the usual regulatory approval process. In 2000, U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer backed restored tribal status for Graton in legislation that, unlike an earlier bill, allowed the possibility of a casino. The project has raised a furor from opponents in both Marin and Sonoma counties since the tribe picked out the land in 2003... Graton chairman Greg Sarris played down the federal decision as "just one of several steps in the long process to reestablish a reservation and build a resort." A 30-day judicial review period for the decision began Wednesday.

LOCAL - TRIBE CLEARS MAJOR HURDLE IN BID FOR RP CASINO:"A Sonoma County Indian tribe on Wednesday cleared a key hurdle in building a Las Vegas-style casino-resort on the outskirts of Rohnert Park. The U.S. Interior Department announced it will take 354 acres of land near Highway 101 into federal trust for the Federated Indians of the Graton Rancheria so that the tribe may pursue the controversial venture. The decision, published in the Federal Register, becomes final after a 3-day period intended to allow time for legal challenges. Casino opponents downplayed the latest development. Pastor Chip Worthington of Stop the Casino 101 Coalition contended the land is under state jurisdiction, not federal, which he asserted makes the federal decision invalid without a vote of the legislature. he accused the tribe and Station Casinos of reservation shopping. 'The people don't want this casino, the local governments don't want it, and it's an environmental nightmare, ' Worthington said in a statement"

CA - RINCON BAND GETS WIN VS. GOVERNOR ON GAMING DEAL: "Judge calls state plan an illegal tax on tribe: A federal court decision in a case involving North County's Rincon Indian band calls into question a practice Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger touted as a way to bring millions of dollars into California's cash-starved coffers. The governor can't demand money for the state's general fund from tribes wanting new gambling deals unless he offers something in return, and an exclusive right to slots isn't enough, a judge in San Diego ruled. “We are disappointed in this unprecedented trial court decision,” said Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear, who vowed an appeal. Rincon's lawyer said the decision is the first of its kind, and it could affect negotiations between tribes and governors across the country. “The court has basically said, 'State, you're acting illegally when you demand from these tribes fees that help with the state's budget deficit,' ” lawyer Scott Crowell said."

CA - ROLES AS CASINO REGULATOR GIVES JERRY BROWN FINE LINE TO WALK AS HE PONDERS NEXT STEP: "Many tribes have become major political donors since he was governor.

They now run bustling casinos that are partly regulated by Brown himself. If he is to make the leap from attorney general -- the job he was elected to in 2006 -- to governor, his campaign likely will need the financial support of the very businesses he oversees, experts say. The attorney general's office's Bureau of Gambling Control is one of several entities that regulate Indian casinos. Whether Brown, as attorney general, can crack down on problems at Indian casinos and simultaneously solicit tribes' political support could become an issue on the campaign trail, as questions of potential conflicts of interest often do. "

LAKE COUNTY - CASINO CAUSES CONTROVERSY FOR TRIBE: "Labeled "dissidents" in media and by the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo tribal leaders, Scotts Valley Pomos Les Miller, formal tribal Chairman, and Steve Elliott were the main engineers behind getting federal recognition for the tribe, which became legally recognized in 1999. Now they feel the desire for money and a profitable casino in the Bay Area is pulling the family apart. "Money has really changed the family. If you get money you go berserk, now we're like strangers," Elliott said. The 109- adult member tribe, with 110
minors, is based in Lakeport with a main office there, with roots in Mendocino, Lake and Sonoma county, and some members argue, Richmond. But Miller, Elliott and at least one ethnohistorian say that's a stretch. Reaching out to claim historic ties to land for the purposes of building a casino is an effort commonly labeled "reservation shopping." The tribe is in the process of proving a connection to land more than 200 miles south of Lakeport in unincorporated Contra Costa County near North Richmond, where plans for a Las Vegas-style casino are under way. And Miller, Elliott and some other members don't agree with the plan."

THE NATION - BAD BET: From the New York Times, "The most important segment of gamblers is not free. And those gamblers are important because they are not free. Compulsive and problem gamblers make up only 2.4 percent of gamblers, according to the Nationa Gambling Impact Study Commission, but they account for a third of receipts, or more. A 1995 MInnesota study found that 1 percent of patrons made half the wagers. Where you have saturation gambling as in Las Vegas, about two thirds of residents at least try it - and 2.4 percent of that two-thirds is a ton of problem gamblers. it translates into rises in suicide, embesslement and bankruptcy that have real social costs."

CA - CASINO CASH ELUDES VAST MAJORITY OF INDIANS: "The expansion of Indian gambling over the past decade wasn't supposed to benefit just the 11 percent of California Indians who are officially enrolled in tribes, according to critics who recall old campaign promises used to woo voters. It was meant, some observers say, to uplift all Indians in the state, many of whom are poor. But the election assurances have been largely ignored. Very little money goes to nontribal Indian people or organizations, and some who helped campaign for the gambling expansions a decade ago say that makes them angry. It's bad enough that many tribes are disenrolling their own members, critics say - but ignoring a huge segment of Indians who were not in tribes to begin with is a separate, but equally outrageous, injustice."

LOCAL - CASINO AN ELECTION TOPIC: "State Senate candidates Carole Migden and Joe Nation said Thursday they oppose efforts to open a casino near Rohnert Park, while Mark Leno said there is little legislators can do about it. Leno, who answered that people should seek a change in federal law if they oppose the casino...said questions would have to be answered about the impacts before he could cast a vote."

THE NATION - CASINO REGULATOR OPPOSES TRIBAL CONSULTATION: "Amid complaints that his agency is overreaching, the chief federal regulator of Indian gaming on Thursday urged Congress not to pass legislation requiring more consultation with tribes. Phil Hogen, chairman of the National Indian Gaming Commission, told the Senate Indian Affairs Committee that tribes often don’t consider consultation adequate unless federal regulators agree with them...The Senate hearing followed last week’s hearing in the House on a bill by Rep. Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., that would require “regular and meaningful consultation and collaboration” with tribal officials in the development of federal policies." (Note: Rahall is the Chairman of the House Resource Committe, the committee that oversees Indian-related issues in Congress. He is pro-tribal, and reportedly receives a great of money from gambling tribes. His legislaion would gut the little control the NIGC has.)

CA - NO FEDERAL APPROVAL, NO CASINO? : "For years, the most controversial part of the tribal gaming process has been casinos proposed for land that either isn’t an ancestral reservation… or land that the federal government hasn’t yet recognized as part of a tribe’s reservation. Critics have derided such proposals as examples of “reservation shopping,” accusing tribes and their deep-pocketed investors of choosing locations solely based on how much money can be made. The legislation in question, SB 1695, would change the way new casinos are approved, by prohibiting the governor from negotiating with any tribe whose casino land hasn’t yet been sanctioned by the U.S. Department of Interior."

CA - PROBLEMS FOUND IN SOFTWARE OF SLOTS: "California's first inspection of slot machines at Indian casinos has found widespread software lapses that could be short-changing tribes, the state and millions of gamblers, the state's gambling commission warns in a new report. State inspectors approved just 60 percent of the slots that were examined last year at seven casinos, which included some of the most successful and sophisticated in the nation."

CHICO - CiTY PASSES ON PROVIDING PUBLIC SAFETY SERVICES TO CASINO: "City leaders said Monday pursuing a chance to provide public safety services for a proposed Mechoopda casino would not financially benefit the city and could open it up to costly liability issues and other problems. City Councilor Steve Bertagna said Monday it does not make sense to respond to a request from the Mechoopda seeking police and fire protection services for a casino the tribe proposes to build near the intersection of Highways 99 and 149. "There just wasn't any upside to offset our involvement. ... It just didn't appear there was a chance we ought to take and it wasn't a financial benefit anyway," Bertagna said in a telephone conversation. "

CENTRAL COAST - JUST THE FACTS, MA'AM -CASINO CRIME STATS: "When my father-in-law was a deputy sheriff here in the 1960's, he and his partner would drive the black and white down to the lumber yard and count the bricks to pass the weary, empty hours 'twixt dusk and dawn. Now the Chumash Casino keeps deputies busy. Last year, incidents included counterfeit chips, child endangerment, numerous auto burglaries, drug busts ("possession of drugs; possession of drugs for sale; under the influence of a controlled substance"), drunks, liars ("providing false information to a police officer"), a stolen vehicle, brandishing a deadly weapon, forgery, battery, domestic battery, petty theft, grand theft, insufficient funds, fictitious checks, a minor in possession of alcohol, trespassing, threats, embezzlement, annoying phone calls, arrests on outstanding warrants, resisting arrest, vandalism, sexual battery, even illegal dumping. Deputies cruised over to the casino 540 times, 229 cases were opened, and there were 159 arrests 'of one or more subjects'."

BAY AREA - ENVIRONMENTAL OK NEARS FOR CASINO PLAN: "In the race to bring a Las Vegas-style casino to the Bay Area, a tribe with connections to Lake County is inching closer but still faces significant opposition. The Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians is on the verge of getting its final environmental study approved for a 225,000-square-foot casino near Richmond."

LOCAL - TRIBE WON'T SEEK CASINO IF PETALUMA SITE GETS WATER: "The Indian tribe that owns River Rock Casino in Geyserville and a 277-acre property south of Petaluma says it will drop its application for gaming rights on the local site in exchange for water and sewer service there.
Without water and sewer hook-ups to the property, the tribe will only delay its application for eight years, under the terms of a wide-ranging agreement reached with the county this week."

THE NATION - CASINO RULING RILES TRIBES: "A major policy change this year by the Interior Department will slow the growth of the multibillion-dollar Indian casino industry. The change, made in a series of letters and a memo issued in early January, essentially rejected 22 applications for new off-reservation casinos by hinging their approval on a single criterion -- the distance from the reservation."

CA - NO CONSENSUS ON MADERA CASINO OF RANCHERIA LAND: "Citizens and public officials packed a hall at the Madera District Fairgrounds on Wednesday evening to cheer -- or jeer -- plans for an Indian casino off Highway 99. They debated whether putting a casino on 305 acres north of Madera, instead of on the North Fork Rancheria in the Sierra foothills, would lessen traffic and pollution problems. But mostly, they argued about whether it would be right to put the casino some 50 miles from where the Mono Indians have their traditional lands."

CA - LOCAL GOVERNMENTS PUSH FOR MORE CONTROL OVERCASINO NEGOTIATIONS: From this week's Capitol Weekly, "Hoping to gain more control over casino negotiations, local governments in California are taking their case to the federal Department of the Interior. Representatives of the League of California Cities and the California State Association of Counties are set to meet with Carl Artman, the assistant secretary of Indian Affairs at Interior, on March 7 when he visits California. These groups are seeking three things local governments aren’t currently getting in casino negotiations, said CSAC spokeswoman DeAnn Baker:
adequate notice that negotiations are taking place; meaningful consultation in the process; and consent of the community where a casino would be placed."

LOCAL - CONSIDER THIS: Sonoma County Council on Aging CEO Shirlee Zane authors a very intersting article on seniors and gambling in the October 2007 issue of Sonoma Senior Today: "Americans gamble more each year than they spend on groceries, spending 600 billion dollars annually. Older adults form the largest group of annual visitors to Las Vegas and spend the majority of gambling dollars. According to the Gambling Impact and Behavior Study, 1999, between 1975 and 1998, the over 65 age group experienced the greatest increase in gambling."

THE NATION - MILLIONS (in tax dollars) GO TO CASINO RICH TRIBES: " In the case of Indian gaming, casinos don't just win your money at the slots; they get millions from your tax dollars, too. "They shouldn't be getting subsidies from taxpayers who don't make that kind of money," said Barbara Anderson from Citizens for Limited Taxation. What a jackpot it's been for the country's two richest tribal casinos. Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun each roll in an estimated $1 billion dollar a year, tax free. Despite all their riches, the federal government continues to pay them millions in grants."

THE NATION - LAWSUIT CLOUDS INDIAN LANDS: From the article: "The U.S. Supreme Court's decision to hear a dispute over tribal land could have Implications for the Mashpee Wampanoag plans to build a casino in Middleboro, Indian law experts said yesterday. The nation's highest court accepted part of a petition by the Rhode Island attorney general in a case known as Carcieri v. Kempthorne. Rhode Island appealed a lower court ruling that upheld the Narragansett tribe's application to put 31 acres of purchased land into trust for housing. Rhode Island officials argue that the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 prevents the federal government from taking land into trust for tribes that were not federally recognized before that date."

CA - CASINO EXPANSION WILL BRING PROBLEMS: " According to Caleb Zuniga (Class of) ’10, who visited Casino Morongo last semester, “The casino and hotel complex were actually very nice, much like many of the Vegas hotels. I just wish I wouldn’t have lost all of my money.” According to the Morongo website, one only has to be 18 years of age in order to gamble in the casino. “There was a group of high school kids playing blackjack when I went, and I never saw any of the dealers check IDs,” added Zuniga. With the increasing popularity of poker and online gambling sites among younger Americans, the casino is effectively targeting gamblers who are not yet 21 years old and cannot gamble in the rest of the state of California. "

THE NATION - PLANS FOR GAMBLING REGULATION CHANGES ALARM TRIBES: " Local American Indian gambling officials expressed alarm over proposed Class II rule changes that could make many of their machines illegal. The proposed changes include clearer definitions to distinguish Class II games from Class III games, including technical changes making games more clearly bingo-based, rather than appearing to be like slot machines."

INTERNATIONAL - FIRST AMERICANS ALL FROM SIBERIA: "New genetic evidence, however, backs up a chilly northwestern arrival to North America from Siberia about 12,000 years ago, via a temporary land bridge spanning the Bering Strait... the first humans of the New World likely made a single migration—not in several waves as some alternative theories posit."

NY - INDIAN CASINO PROJECT IN SULLIVAN DEAD: 2/13/08 "The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe formally ended its bid today to build a Sullivan casino. The Tribe notified local and state leaders and Congress, including the National Indian Gaming Commission, of the Tribe’s formal departure from the project at the Monticello Gaming & Raceway. The tribe also withdrew its federal lawsuit against the Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne, who rejected their proposal on Jan. 4."

LOCAL - COUNTY VOTERS SEND MESSAGE ON CASINOS: " Sonoma County voted by a 2-1 margin against allowing four Southern California tribes to triple the number of slot machines in their casinos, a result some read as a rebuke for all Indian gaming. "Since the casino issues in the measures are several hundred miles away, the logical conclusion is that Sonoma County people are concerned with the existing local casinos and the ones that are proposed," said Mike Healy, a former Petaluma councilman and casino opponent. "I believe it is a protest vote, and a very loud protest vote." The vote also rekindled interest by a Sonoma County supervisor in a countywide advisory measure on proposed casinos in Rohnert Park and Cloverdale and the expansion of River Rock Casino in Geyserville."

CA - HOW SPECIAL INTERESTS AVOID SPENDING LIMITS: "More money is flowing into California's legislative campaigns than ever, despite contribution limits that voters approved eight years ago in an attempt to quash the influence of well-heeled special interests in state elections, according to an analysis by The Chronicle. Big-ticket donations have moved from candidate-run funds, where individual contributions are capped at $3,600 per election, into independent campaigns run by powerful groups to elect or defeat candidates. Special interests also use loopholes to funnel money to legislators by donating to funds that fall outside the law's limits, including legal defense funds, ballot measure committees or lawmakers' favorite charities. Insurance and tobacco companies, unions, Indian tribes and other groups have used independent expenditure campaigns to pump millions of dollars into otherwise obscure state Assembly and Senate races, sometimes outspending the candidates themselves. "

CA - CONTRARY VIEWS OF RP CASINO DEBATED: " A prominent supporter and opponent of a casino resort proposed near Rohnert Park squared off in a debate Wednesday, alternately describing the facility as either "a dream" or "a nightmare." Susan Adams, the chairwoman of the Rohnert Park Planning Commission... said a casino would create major traffic problems, generating at least 20,000 more vehicle trips daily, lead to an increase in crime and gambling addiction and hurt existing businesses. Adams held up photos of the barred fronts of homes near a casino in Southern California, along with proliferating pawn shops. She said a casino would take away people's discretionary income so that money is "taken out of the economy, tax base and the pockets of people who can least afford to be going to a casino and gambling."

CA - TOUGH ODDS FOR GAMBLING ADDICTS: "There are an estimated 1.2 million gambling addicts just like her in California - 300,000, or about 30 percent, more than before voters approved Proposition 1A in 2000 to allow Las Vegas-class gambling on Indian lands in California...At the root of that growth is Indian gaming, which has exploded in California from a limited-game $1.4 billion business in 2000 to a $7.7 billion behemoth today that draws more than 10 million gamblers a year - and has eclipsed Las Vegas' $6.5 billion annual take to become the premier gambling region of America."

LOCAL - CASINOS AND CARS: " Critics of a Las Vegas-style casino planned in Rohnert Park say the traffic impacts from the $450 million resort and hotel project have been seriously underestimated and could be triple the number of vehicle trips currently envisioned, crippling traffic on Highway 101 and offsetting any improvements from the current widening efforts. "

MI - TRIBE WITHOLDS NEW MICHIGAN CASINO'S FIRST REVENUE PAYMENT: Story in full from WWMT Newschannel 3: " The American Indian tribe that owns the new Four Winds Casino Resort in extreme southwestern Michigan is withholding its first revenue-sharing payments from local governments and school districts. The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians says it has concerns about the organization of the board that is to oversee the distribution of the estimated $3 million a year in payments. The casino opened in August in Berrien County's New Buffalo Township. Its first payments were due this week. The tribe tells The Herald-Palladium of St. Joseph that it instead has placed the money in an interest-bearing escrow account until an agreement can be reached."

THE NATION - TRIBAL TAKEOVER OF NATIONAL PARKS AND REFUGES ON FAST-TRACK: "..Congress will consider legislation that directs the Interior Department to turn over many national parks, wildlife refuges and other operations to tribal governments under virtually permanent funding agreements, according to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). National parks such as Redwood, Glacier, Voyageurs, Olympic and the Cape Cod National Seashore are among the 57 park units in 19 states listed as eligible for tribal operation, as are 19 refuges in 8 states, including all of the Alaska National Wildlife Refuges and the National Bison Range in Montana. Under its terms, tribes could take over any Interior programs "that are of special geographical, historical, or cultural significance to the Indian tribe" and receive federal payments covering all direct and indirect costs. The Interior Secretary would "establish programmatic targets" ensuring that "a significant portion" of federal jobs and programs are included. Assumption would be mandatory wherever a tribe "has a federally reserved right" in local fish, wildlife, water or minerals. In all other cases, Interior could refuse a tribe only where it can show a legal prohibition or "a significant danger or risk to the public health." Once executed, the tribal funding agreements could not be terminated for non-performance, but could only be suspended for "gross mismanagement" or "imminent jeopardy" to resources or public health. In addition, tribes would have the right to be fully paid in advance. Any savings or economies would go entirely to the tribe and future payments to the tribe could not be reduced. "

LOCAL - CLOVERDALE LAND SALE FUELS CASINO SPECULATION: " A long-stalled casino proposal in Cloverdale appears to be moving forward with the purchase of 25 acres by a company associated with the local Pomo Indian tribe.A Delaware-based company has agreed to pay $8.25 million -- almost triple the estimated market value for the property -- fueling speculation that it will be for a casino site. The company buying the property, Amanos LLC, is linked to an Alaskan tribal consortium that has helped finance at least one other casino in California. The land, which abuts Cloverdale's southeastern city limits, has been optioned previously by separate tribes for a possible casino site. When Amonos -- Sonoma spelled backward -- bought the property at an inflated price, it set off alarm bells. "There's no way they would pay that without an intention for a casino. It doesn't make any financial sense," former Cloverdale city manager Vince Long said Wednesday. "What else could it be?" said City Councilman Bob Jehn. Amonos officials declined to talk about the purchase and referred inquiries to the Cloverdale Rancheria, one of the tribal factions seeking to build a casino. "

BAY AREA - CASINO SAN PABLO EXPANSION BLOCKED: "The U.S. Senate passed a bill this week that would keep a North Bay Indian tribe from expanding its San Pablo casino into a Las Vegas-style gambling palace. The measure would allow the tribe to keep more than 1,000 bingo-style machines in the once-sleepy cardroom. Sen. Dianne Feinstein's bill cleared the Senate late Monday by unanimous consent. Her office is now seeking support in the House, said spokesman Phil LaVelle. Under the bill the Senate passed Monday, the tribe could expand the 70,000-square-foot casino only if it went through the normal, longshot process under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. No California tribe has ever succeeded in that process. "

NY - TRIBE LOSES CASINO BID: "A federal judge has struck down the Shinnecock Indian Nation's bid to build a casino on a disputed parcel of land in the Hamptons... The judge...cited a U.S. Supreme Court decision ( City of Sherrill v. Oneida Nation March 29, 2005) that barred building a casino if it would have "highly disruptive consequences" on the area." You can read the judge's decision HERE. Page three has the pertinent information that proves Graton can be defeated using the City of Sherrill v. Oneida Nation .

AZ - ARCHAEOLOGISTS JOIN OPPOSITION OF NEW YUMA INDIAN CASINO: "Archaeologists with a regional museum group who surveyed an Indian casino site called it a significant cultural and religious site that would be destroyed if construction goes forward. The Quechan Indian Tribe's $200 million casino and resort project outside Yuma has been criticized by some tribal members for the same reason. But building recently resumed after a majority of the tribe voted to continue work and not seek a new site. Jay von Werlhof, one of the archaeologists who wrote to the tribe, said the building zone contains one of the most important sacred Indian sites he has studied in his 52-year career. von Werlhof also stressed that the historic site is located within the construction zone, despite tribal leaders' arguments otherwise. von Werlhof worked with the Quechan for five years in the tribe's battle to protect Indian Pass from a gold mine project. He has written two books that include the Quechan Tribe and its history and has taught at the University of California and San Diego State University. "

WA - CRAMPED WOODLAND SCHOOLS CRINGE AT CASINO: "The Cowlitz Indian's $510 million casino will add to overcrowding in Woodland schools and may increase the number of problem students, according to district officials, who want the tribe to pay for coping with those challenges. District officials this week said they aren't buying the tribe's claim that only a few students would be added to Woodland schools. The casino is projected to become Clark County's largest employer, creating nearly 3,200 jobs, said Superintendent Michael Green.
"The reality is those can be huge impacts for (school) districts," said Green told the school board Monday. Casino workers are projected to have a median annual salary of $28,000. Employees making less than that amount will likely move into the district, Green said. He said statistics show that students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds require more social and academic support and have higher drop-out rates. All these factors effect school budgets, Green said."

THE NATION - GOVERNMENT TAKES AIM AT INDIAN CASINO GAME: "Aiming to rein in the booming Indian gambling industry, the government is trying to make sure electronic bingo machines at tribal casinos can't masquerade as Las Vegas-style slots. Slot machines are more lucrative for tribes and more attractive to players, but they are subject to state approval and limits. Video bingo isn't. As tribes increasingly supplement their slot machine allotments with video bingo, manufacturers have produced electronic bingo machines that are virtually indistinguishable from slots -- spinning reels, blinking lights and all. "

LOCAL - HUFFMAN'S ENVIRONMENTAL WAVES: WHEN SMART politics and sound policy come together, big wins are possible. A freshman assemblyman from Marin is making waves in Sacramento with a legislative scorecard that is the envy of far more senior legislators...Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata once mused that under term limits, newly elected legislators spend their first two years locating the bathrooms, their second two years gathering support for a viable measure and their final two years looking for a new job...Huffman has quickly mastered the art of legislative statecraft... Through their innovative ideas and political savvy, Huffman and a few of his like-minded colleagues are moving California ahead into a brighter environmental future."

LOCAL - CHALLENGE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN RP: " The Conley Consulting Group presented Rohnert Park's City Council with a 42-page highly-detailed, single-spaced report dotted with charts and graphs, called "Economic Development Action Plan." The report discusses "... 'two new developments which will markedly change the attraction of visitors to the city.' The new developments are both outside city limits but will have a huge impact locally. They are Sonoma State University's Green Music Center on the east and the proposed casino and resort hotel by Graton Rancheria ." While the Music Center will provide "... an immediate economic development for the city", "... the forecasts (for the casino) are not quite so rosy. Largely self-contained, the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria and Station Casinos could draw 8,000 visitors a day, but their needs will mostly be met on-site"

LOCAL - TRAIL OF CASH: " Let's be frank. Who is benefiting from this ill-intentioned project ( the Graton casino ) that, according to a report on Indian-owned casinos by the California Attorney General, is guaranteed to increase crime, misery, mental illness and loss of productive jobs? Winner numero uno: Sarris. In 2003, Station Casinos funneled $1.5 million through the tribe to SSU to establish a chair in Native American studies. According to public records, the prof soaks up nearly $200 grand a year for a "reduced" teaching load which frees him up for "community work." This recent Byrne Report pulls no punches!

MA - POLS SLOW ACTING ON OUSTED TRIBE LEADER'S CAMPAIGN DONATIONS: " Glenn Marshall’s Indian tribe ousted him from office days after he publicly acknowledged lying about his personal history, but Massachusetts elected officials have been in no rush to return his campaign contributions..(received) from (Dennis) Marshall, the Mashpee Wampanoag who lied about his military service and concealed his 1981 rape conviction while leading the tribe’s campaign for federal recognition and a casino... The tribe removed Marshall from power Aug. 28 after he acknowledged a 1981 rape conviction and that he lied to Congress. The Vietnam veteran falsely claimed in 2004 testimony that he survived the siege of Khe Sahn in April 1968. At the time, Marshall was in high school. "

CA - FEINSTEIN BILL ON CASINO CLEARS KEY COMMITTEE: While the Senator won't lift a finger to help Rohnert Park, her bill to keep slot machines out of the San Pablo casino is moving happily forward. " Feinstein's compromise bill, which would lock in the status quo, has drawn support from the tribe and some of the casino's staunchest critics, including Assemblywoman Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley. Opposition remains from the East Bay Coalition Against Urban Casinos, a local group funded by a few Bay Area card clubs. "

CA - MEMBERS OF THE SAN MANUEL INDIANS LINKED TO MEXICAN MAFIA: "Authorities say that several members of a wealthy Inland gambling tribe have links to the Mexican Mafia and other criminal gangs, according to law-enforcement officials and documents from a pending court case. Among the members of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians with alleged gang ties, two are charged with conspiracy to commit murder in a case involving gang members, according to authorities. They were arrested during a drug bust at the reservation and in the San Bernardino area in December."

CA - SEIZED SLOT MACHINES SYMPTOM: "The recent seizure of dozens of illegal slot machines, at what appears to be an otherwise legitimate business, highlights the seedier underside of California’s billion-dollar gambling industry, according to authorities. More than 80 illegal Japanese slot machines were seized at Ace Casino Rentals, in the 100 block of Starlite Street, in South San Francisco last month, following a three-month investigation, according to the Division of Gambling Control in the state Department of Justice. A court date has been set for next month in San Mateo County Superior Court, where Ace Casino operators Larry and Connie Hegre are expected to face charges of illegal possession of slot machines, authorities said."

LOCAL - RP GROUP SUES OVER CASINO ROUTE PLANS: "A Rohnert Park citizens' group has filed a lawsuit in federal court against Caltrans and federal highway agencies to force more environmental review of an overpass expansion that would be a key route to a planned area casino. The suit was filed late last week, according to Linda Long, a member of the Rohnert Park Citizens to Enforce CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act), which filed the lawsuit. It accuses the state transportation agency of failing to incorporate possible impacts from a proposed casino to neighborhoods in the area. "

CA - COUNTY CHALLENGES TRIBE'S TIE TO LAND: "Citing "newly developed evidence," the county last week filed a motion seeking to amend a federal lawsuit it hopes will prevent construction of a second casino in the area. Specifically, the motion claims new evidence "documenting a total lack of any historical tribal presence on the Buena Vista Rancheria," which is the site of a proposed 2,000-slot gaming facility near Ione being pursued by the Buena Vista Band of Me-Wuk Indians...."

LOCAL - LAWMAKER ENTERS FRAY ON RP CASINO: "Assemblyman Jared Huffman met Tuesday with staffers of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to try to confirm rumors that a Sonoma County Indian tribe is negotiating a compact needed to open a casino near Rohnert Park. Huffman, whose district includes Rohnert Park, said he didn't get an answer. But after an hourlong meeting, the San Rafael Democrat said: "My gut tells me they have been in discussions."