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Draft contract between state, Seminoles would allow Vegas-style slots, blackjack in Immokalee
Oct. 15 deadline looms
By Michael Peltier
Originally published — 9:54 p.m., October 8, 2007
Updated — 12:18 p.m., October 9, 2007
TALLAHASSEE — With a federal deadline looming, Gov. Charlie Crist is betting that he can reach an agreement with the Seminole Tribe of Florida that will benefit state coffers when the tribe expands its gambling operations.
</STRONG></EM>Last week, state officials released a draft of a 25-year compact between the state and the tribe allowing it to offer “Las Vegas”-style slot machines with higher stakes and opening the door to more games like blackjack and baccarat at seven casinos including the Seminole Casino of Immokalee.
It’s a deal that some say could be an economic catalyst in Immokalee. It’s a deal that others say could be detrimental to pari-mutuel wagering at places such as the Naples-Fort Myers Greyhound Track in Bonita Springs.
Last week, the Interior Department extended until Oct. 15 its deadline to consider giving its permission for the Seminoles to offer Vegas-style slots.
George Lemieux, Crist chief of staff, said the Bureau of Indian Affairs has made it clear that if the state doesn’t make a deal with the tribe, the federal agency will.
“If we don’t’ reach an agreement, and reach an agreement in the short term, (Indian Affairs officials) are going to let the Seminoles provide Class III gaming in the form of slot machines,” Lemieux said. “The state will collect no revenue and have no consumer protection (oversight.)”
The issue has put Crist at odds with some House leaders who oppose any expansion of gambling and contend that it’s up to the Legislature to approve any pact with Indian tribes.
Crist wants to reach an accord that would translate into tax revenue for the state, which would take a cut of the winnings.
The deal between the Seminoles and the state could also have a trickle-down effect on the Naples Fort Myers Greyhound Track.
It could shut out the track of the opportunity to also have slot machines in the near future.
This is what Dan Adkins, chief gaming executive of Mardi Gras Gaming in Hallandale Beach, fears.
He called the current proposal on the table a “bad deal.”
Adkins wants a deal that would allow Vegas-style gambling at all of the state-governed pari-mutuel gambling sites, too.
“Let’s just legalize it,” said Adkins, who successfully spearheaded the efforts to get Class III slots in the Broward race-casinos. “If we are going to make a deal let’s make it across the table where we are all on a level playing field. Let’s do it right the first time and include everyone in this pact.”
Scott Savin, the chief operating officer of Southwest Florida Enterprises, the Miami-based company that manages one of the region’s existing gaming establishments, the Naples-Fort Myers Greyhound Track, wants to make sure the deal protects the pari-mutuel wagering.
“If there isn’t any pronounced details to protect pari-mutuel gaming it could be detrimental to the industry,” Savin said.
Indian gaming laws going back to 1988 generally allow tribes to conduct gambling operations on their sovereign lands. It also allows them to provide games equivalent to those being offered on non-tribal lands.
Broward County voters in 2005 approved Las Vegas slot machines. Tribal leaders have been negotiating with state and federal officials over expanding their own menu of games to include such machines.
Under the draft agreement, the tribe agrees to pay the state an as yet undefined percentage of casino revenue. The Tribe’s attorney, Barry Richard, had previously said that the Seminoles were willing to pay $50 million up front and up to $100 million a year.
This is where Adkins has a problem. Currently, the four casinos in Broward County are taxed at 50 percent. He said the Broward tax bill adds up to $200 million and the Seminoles will be taxed less than 10 percent of their total profits, which is only $15 million per casino.
“The Indians are the ones being greedy here,” Adkins said. “Let’s just bury the hatchet, and that’s not a pun.”
Adkins also worries about all of the outs the deal allows for the Tribe. The Seminoles would stop paying immediately if similar non-Indian casinos spring up outside of Broward and Miami-Dade County, if gambling expands in Broward and Miami-Dade and if their net winnings drop below $1.37 billion, which is now estimated to be the tribe’s annual take.
He also points out that the Tribe casinos would be allowed to have video versions of craps and roulette, which are not allowed at the four Broward casinos.
The Tribe would however have to follow the same state rules for gaming which would only allow them to operate the poker rooms for 12 hours.
Any agreement would have to be approved by the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Crist has argued that if the state doesn’t make a compact, the federal government will and Florida will get nothing from Indian casinos.
The Seminoles in March filed a federal lawsuit in Miami charging that the state is not negotiating in good faith. The Miccosukee Tribe is also participating in the lawsuit.
Adkins says a deal could result in a financial windfall for a small town such as Immokalee, creating longtime jobs and economic development. But he believes the effect could be doubled if the state agrees to expand gambling to all existing betting places.
“You make it a destination that would bring in billions for the state,” Adkins said, “and then everyone’s a winner.”
Staff Writer Tom Hanson contributed to this report.
© 2007 Naples Daily News and NDN Productions. Published in Naples, Florida, USA by the E.W. Scripps Co.
Draft contract between state, Seminoles would allow Vegas-style slots, blackjack in Immokalee
Oct. 15 deadline looms
By Michael Peltier
Originally published — 9:54 p.m., October 8, 2007
Updated — 12:18 p.m., October 9, 2007
TALLAHASSEE — With a federal deadline looming, Gov. Charlie Crist is betting that he can reach an agreement with the Seminole Tribe of Florida that will benefit state coffers when the tribe expands its gambling operations.
</STRONG></EM>Last week, state officials released a draft of a 25-year compact between the state and the tribe allowing it to offer “Las Vegas”-style slot machines with higher stakes and opening the door to more games like blackjack and baccarat at seven casinos including the Seminole Casino of Immokalee.
It’s a deal that some say could be an economic catalyst in Immokalee. It’s a deal that others say could be detrimental to pari-mutuel wagering at places such as the Naples-Fort Myers Greyhound Track in Bonita Springs.
Last week, the Interior Department extended until Oct. 15 its deadline to consider giving its permission for the Seminoles to offer Vegas-style slots.
George Lemieux, Crist chief of staff, said the Bureau of Indian Affairs has made it clear that if the state doesn’t make a deal with the tribe, the federal agency will.
“If we don’t’ reach an agreement, and reach an agreement in the short term, (Indian Affairs officials) are going to let the Seminoles provide Class III gaming in the form of slot machines,” Lemieux said. “The state will collect no revenue and have no consumer protection (oversight.)”
The issue has put Crist at odds with some House leaders who oppose any expansion of gambling and contend that it’s up to the Legislature to approve any pact with Indian tribes.
Crist wants to reach an accord that would translate into tax revenue for the state, which would take a cut of the winnings.
The deal between the Seminoles and the state could also have a trickle-down effect on the Naples Fort Myers Greyhound Track.
It could shut out the track of the opportunity to also have slot machines in the near future.
This is what Dan Adkins, chief gaming executive of Mardi Gras Gaming in Hallandale Beach, fears.
He called the current proposal on the table a “bad deal.”
Adkins wants a deal that would allow Vegas-style gambling at all of the state-governed pari-mutuel gambling sites, too.
“Let’s just legalize it,” said Adkins, who successfully spearheaded the efforts to get Class III slots in the Broward race-casinos. “If we are going to make a deal let’s make it across the table where we are all on a level playing field. Let’s do it right the first time and include everyone in this pact.”
Scott Savin, the chief operating officer of Southwest Florida Enterprises, the Miami-based company that manages one of the region’s existing gaming establishments, the Naples-Fort Myers Greyhound Track, wants to make sure the deal protects the pari-mutuel wagering.
“If there isn’t any pronounced details to protect pari-mutuel gaming it could be detrimental to the industry,” Savin said.
Indian gaming laws going back to 1988 generally allow tribes to conduct gambling operations on their sovereign lands. It also allows them to provide games equivalent to those being offered on non-tribal lands.
Broward County voters in 2005 approved Las Vegas slot machines. Tribal leaders have been negotiating with state and federal officials over expanding their own menu of games to include such machines.
Under the draft agreement, the tribe agrees to pay the state an as yet undefined percentage of casino revenue. The Tribe’s attorney, Barry Richard, had previously said that the Seminoles were willing to pay $50 million up front and up to $100 million a year.
This is where Adkins has a problem. Currently, the four casinos in Broward County are taxed at 50 percent. He said the Broward tax bill adds up to $200 million and the Seminoles will be taxed less than 10 percent of their total profits, which is only $15 million per casino.
“The Indians are the ones being greedy here,” Adkins said. “Let’s just bury the hatchet, and that’s not a pun.”
Adkins also worries about all of the outs the deal allows for the Tribe. The Seminoles would stop paying immediately if similar non-Indian casinos spring up outside of Broward and Miami-Dade County, if gambling expands in Broward and Miami-Dade and if their net winnings drop below $1.37 billion, which is now estimated to be the tribe’s annual take.
He also points out that the Tribe casinos would be allowed to have video versions of craps and roulette, which are not allowed at the four Broward casinos.
The Tribe would however have to follow the same state rules for gaming which would only allow them to operate the poker rooms for 12 hours.
Any agreement would have to be approved by the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Crist has argued that if the state doesn’t make a compact, the federal government will and Florida will get nothing from Indian casinos.
The Seminoles in March filed a federal lawsuit in Miami charging that the state is not negotiating in good faith. The Miccosukee Tribe is also participating in the lawsuit.
Adkins says a deal could result in a financial windfall for a small town such as Immokalee, creating longtime jobs and economic development. But he believes the effect could be doubled if the state agrees to expand gambling to all existing betting places.
“You make it a destination that would bring in billions for the state,” Adkins said, “and then everyone’s a winner.”
Staff Writer Tom Hanson contributed to this report.
© 2007 Naples Daily News and NDN Productions. Published in Naples, Florida, USA by the E.W. Scripps Co.
