SB 1201 (Battin) – Oppose Unless Amended
As Amended on April 30, 2008
 
SB 1201, by Senator Jim Battin, would provide that the aggregate limit of gaming device licenses available for issuance under the 1999 Tribal-State Gaming Compacts shall be 122,000, and would further provide that certain gaming device licenses available for issuance under subsequent compact amendments shall not be counted in determining whether that aggregate limit has been reached.
 
This measure is intended to settle the very controversial issue regarding the aggregate number of slots that the 61 tribes under the 1999 Compact can collectively operate. That compact did authorize up to 2,000 slots per tribe, but established an aggregate cap that was not sufficient for every tribe to achieve their maximum amount. Thus, distributing gaming licenses was done via a type of lottery. As such, significant inequities have occurred from tribe to tribe with respect to their allotted slot amount. Senator Battin wants to ensure that every tribal government with a 1999 Compact can obtain gaming licenses, if desired, up to the maximum of 2,000 gaming machines authorized in the compact.
 
Should SB 1201 be successful, numerous tribes would have the ability to pursue increased slot machines without the obligation to re-negotiate a new compact with Governor Schwarzenegger, and thus would not trigger the critical CSAC objective of requiring a judicially enforceable local agreement to mitigate off-reservation impacts. Therefore, CSAC is opposed unless amended to SB 1201.
 
CSAC believes that a Tribal Government operating a casino or other related businesses should mitigate all off-reservation impacts caused by that business. Furthermore, a tribal government operating a casino or other related businesses should pay to the local jurisdiction the tribe’s fair share of appropriate costs for local government services. These services include, but are not limited to, water, sewer, fire inspection and protection, rescue/ambulance, food inspection, health and social services, law enforcement, roads, transit, flood control, and other public infrastructure.
 
In order to fully implement these principles, CSAC believes that tribes should meet with and reach a judicially enforceable agreement with local jurisdictions on these issues before a new compact or an extended compact becomes effective. Thus, CSAC requests that an amendment be made to SB 1201 requiring any tribe that increases its number of gaming devices under this legislation to negotiate a local agreement for the mitigation of off-reservation impacts with local communities.
 
SB 1201 failed passage in the Assembly Governmental Organization Committee on June 25 however, reconsideration was granted thus it may be heard in committee again before the end of the legislative session.