Tag: Tribal Casinos

Florida Legislature All About Money

Florida is suffering from a $3.2 billion shortfall in its budget, which includes a very hard hit to education. The problem? Florida’s children risk a loss of teachers and programs, and even some scholarships.

With that in mind, Governor Charlie Crist made that his push behind the Seminole blackjack and slots compact in his talks with the state’s Legislature. He was known to say, “Do it for the children.”

The first two compacts that the Seminoles and state Legislature have squabbled over have both gone bust. Then all of a sudden here is a third compact and it’s heading for approval.

This third run at a compact would give the Seminoles five years of exclusivity for blackjack tables, and twenty years for Vegas-style slots; the only other places in Florida where slots can be found is in two counties in which voters had already approved Vegas-style slots within county lines. In exchange for this blackjack exclusivity the Seminoles are going to be paying Florida more than $1 billion dollars over five years.

However you can’t make everyone happy. And this time around it was the pari-mutuels who felt that they would be unable to compete with the Seminoles’ casinos if they were given exclusivity to blackjack and slots, even with higher poker limits and extended hours of operation. Initially it appeared that the Legislature was siding with the pari-mutuels. But the truth always comes out.

So what made this third compact agreeable to the state Legislature? It wasn’t the extensions or even the possible tax break for the pari-mutuels. The Legislature was never on the side of the pari-mutuels. What has been over-looked is where that $1 billion plus dollars for blackjack exclusivity are going. And it’s not going to the children.

The Legislature has been out for money the whole time. It seems its hang up didn’t have to do with the pari-mutuels feeling like the compact was unfair. It had to do with where the money was going. Change the money’s destination and the Legislature likes the compact now.

So where is the money from the Seminoles exclusivity to blackjack going?

It will be going into the state’s general revenue fund. That means that the state government *cough, cough* Legislature can decided how the money is to be spent. It’s a sad day when part of the government is willing to short fall their children’s education so that they can have power of this money.

More Opposition to the Seminole’s Blackjack

While the most recent bill to settle the long-standing conflict between the State of Florida and the Seminoles works its way through the House and soon the Senate, more voices are coming forward to cry out against the Seminole’s exclusivity.

If the bill runs its course through the House, the Senate and finally to Governor Charlie Crist, the Seminoles would have to pay $1.5 billion over five years to have exclusivity to games like blackjack. There would be an immediate payment to the state of $435 million. And with a $3.2 billion gap in the Florida budget the money is needed—particularly for education.

However there are two groups that are very much against the Seminoles winning this exclusivity—one for greed and one for the good of our own morale well-being.

The first group is comprised of the pari-mutuels of Florida. The dog and horse tracks have been a part of Florida’s gambling culture for decades. But the last few years there has been a decline in interest at the dog and horse tracks.

This could be for a couple of reasons. 1. The people are no longer interested in betting on dog and horse races, and have been attracted to the Vegas-style games like blackjack that can now be found within their own state—no more travelling to Vegas or Atlantic City for the casino experience. 2. With the increase in awareness of animal abuse, many people feel that the treatment of dog and horses in the races are not treated humanely, and that the races themselves are inhuman.

Pari-mutuels fear losing business to the tribe casinos. They fear that they won’t be able to compete. Unfortunately, times change and people’s interest changes. While the tracks site that they will be forced to cut jobs due to a loss of income thanks to the Seminoles and their blackjack tables, the tribe casinos will be in the position to create new jobs under this compact.

Now the other group of opponents that are trying to save us from ourselves. Members of Florida Family Action and the Florida Baptist Convention, along with other opponents, want the entire deal scrapped, saying that offering Vegas-style games like blackjack will increase family problems through addictions and will increase crime.

But what they’re forgetting is that Florida is at odds with the Seminoles, a sovereign nation. And they can’t be at odds forever. The battle over the Seminoles exclusivity to blackjack has to end because Florida can’t be at odds with a sovereign nation within its borders.

There is also Florida’s history of gambling to consider. The state has had dog and horse tracks for decades. Floridians have been gambling for decades. They want to gamble and forcing them to outside of the state will mean a loss of income for Florida.

It seems that these morally opposed groups feel that the only way to gamble is often and with large sums of money. Apparently they haven’t heard of playing as a form of entertainment or of low-stakes games.

And what about the much needed money for the state? Are Florida’s children supposed to suffer because a handful of groups want to tell us what is good for us?

But the opponents to the Seminoles having exclusivity to blackjack will have to come to terms with it because it seems this compact is going to go through and be signed. It appears that Florida knows its children need their education.

Tribal Governments Not as Against Online Gambling as We Think

Because many of the highest grossing casinos in the United States are owned and operated by one of the Indian tribes it would seem natural that they would be against the US legalizing online gambling. And for the most part the tribes were. But with attitudes towards legalizing gambling softening and individual states legalizing some online gambling, the tribes are having to re-evaluate their stance on online gambling.

It’s no wonder that the tribes were against legalizing online gambling. Their casinos bring in money to fund education, health care and other government services to Native Americans. You can understand how they would feel threatened by online gambling. It’s not so much taking their business away and they’re selfish, but they are fearful of a loss of income that funds the government programs that helps their people.

But their view is changing. Let’s take a look at a possible reason or two why.

First off the majority of online gambling is done in card game s like poker and blackjack and in sports betting. In 2008 the revenue from those games in the tribal casinos was only $7.3 billion of the $26.8 billion that was made that year. So poker, blackjack and sports betting in a casino are only a small part of the tribal casinos’ total revenue. It stands to reason that they might not be as fearful of legalized online gambling as before.

Another possible reason—if online gambling is legalized in the US the tribes could set themselves up as an online operator of internet gambling they could have a whole new outlet for generating income.

But the tribes have sited that they believe that the US has the technology to regulate online gambling should it be legalized. And they have faith in that regulation, that it could help preserve the exclusive attributes of their casinos. Barney Frank, D-Mass. is the author of such legislation and he has taken the tribes needs into consideration:

“I intend that this legislation should have no impact on (tribal) compacts with states; that is, the bill should not in any way impair existing rights regarding compacts either currently in force or to be signed in the future.”

However, tribal organizations are not endorsing any of the bills being proposed right now. But the tribes being favorable on the subject of legalized online gambling is a good start.

Tribal Casinos vs. Online Casinos

It is well known that Congressman Barney Frank is at the head of trying to make online casinos and online gambling legal in the United States. He is trying to put through the U.S. Congress HR 2267, Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and Enforcement Act.

Basically Frank is trying to make it legal for us to wager on casinos games, such as blackjack, within the U.S. It would also allow the U.S. Federal Government to regulate and tax online gambling. And if online casinos became established within the U.S., it would allow the Federal Government to tax those online casinos.

It would be more revenue for the U.S., who could use the money.

Enter the tribal casinos.

Tribal casinos are some of the most prominent land based casino organizations in the U.S. And they are, of course, against Frank and his bill to legalize online gambling and online casinos within the U.S. No, it’s not because they’re suddenly against gambling. Just online gambling.

Daniel Tucker is the recently re-elected chairman of the leading organization of tribal gaming. And he is quoted as saying that Frank and his bill are “the greatest threat to Indian gaming in 20 years.”

This could be attributed to the fact that playing in online casinos can be done in your home, without any travel. Online casinos make playing your favorite casino games, like blackjack, more convenient. And therein lies the threat that has the tribal casinos up in arms.

Tucker feels that online casinos are a threat because they “will transfer billions of dollars from Indian Reservations.”

From Indian Reservations.

You can see where their concern lies. And while I have nothing against the tribal casinos—they offer quite a nice place to play in—it seems that they aren’t liking the idea of facing their first real competition. They could face other land based casinos with their own land based casinos. But how can they compete with the convenience offered by online casinos. And rather than put their heads together and try to find a way to compete, they would rather challenge a bill that could generate some much needed revenue for the U.S.

One advantage that tribal casinos have over online casinos is that they offer a whole experience. While online casinos’ gaming software can try to replicate the lights and sounds of a casino, it’s still not the same as being in a real casino.