February 23, 2007
Tribes get powerful backing Perata, Ducheny get behind bill for slot increase
Jake Henshaw Desert Sun Sacramento Bureau SACRAMENTO - Two of the Senate's most powerful figures will carry the bills for Palm Springs-area gaming tribes which are seeking to increase their slot machine allowances by up to 2,500 slots each. The revised compacts, struck with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger at the end of the last legislative session with the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians of Palm Springs and the Morongo Band of Mission Indians of Cabazon, would flow hundreds of millions of dollars into state coffers. Senate leader Don Perata, D-Oakland, told The Desert Sun Thursday he will be the author of the gambling agreement, known as a compact, for the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians. ''I carried the Agua (bill) last year and I'm going to carry it again this year,'' Perata said in an interview He added that Sen. Denise Ducheny, D-San Diego, will be the author of the compact bill for the Morongo Band. Assemblyman Charles Calderon, D-Montebello, also will author a bill for the Morongo compact. Ducheny couldn't be reached for comment because she was traveling back to her district. Sens. Lou Correa, D-Pacoima, and Alex Padilla, D-Pacoima, will be authors of the compact for the San Manuel Band of San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, Perata added. Agua Caliente and Morongo tribal representatives declined to comment. It also wasn't immediately clear who would be the authors of compacts legislation for the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians and the Sycuan Band of Kumeyaay Nation. Together, these five amended compacts are the largest ones pending approval, increasing the number of authorized slot machines from the current maximum of 2,000 per tribe to either 5,000 or 7,500.	The Associated Press Assemblywoman Bonnie Garcia, R-Cathedral City, was the formal author of Assembly Bill 2399 last year, which would have added slots machines to the casino owned by the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians. Richard Milanovich is the tribal chairman of that tribe. Terms of the deal Here are some highlights of the gaming compact revision negotiated by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians. Total value: Up to $1.8 billion to the state's General Fund through 2030 Slots: 5,000, up from current 2,000 Casinos: 3, up from 2 today. No immediate plans to build a thrid casino. General Fund input from tribe: $23.4 million immediately, up to $81.9 million a year at deal's maturity. Rates: Every new slot added beyond that to 3,000 would reap a 15 percent return on net win for the state. That makes the blended rate 12.5 percent, nearly 4 percent more than the 8.9 percent business tax rate More online Tribes find legislative support for bills
There also are four other new compacts pending that would authorize between 99 and 2,250 slot machines per tribe. Today is the deadline for the introduction of bills this year, and Calderon already has introduced the Assembly Bill 266 on the Morongo compact. A number of placeholder bills, which can be amended later, also have been introduced and allow lawmakers to delay making final decisions on legislation by the deadline. Perata was not the formal author of Assembly Bill 2399 last year for the Agua Caliente compact - that was Assemblywoman Bonnie Garcia, R-Cathedral City, with Sen. Jim Battin, R-La Quinta, as principal coauthor. But as the Senate leader, Perata controls the flow of legislation and last year allowed AB 2399 to reach the Senate floor where it passed. It later failed to pass the Assembly, and no other compact bills were taken up in either house for a vote at the end of the 2006 session, when the ratification language was amended into bills. The Democratic authors this year may help this year since Democrats are the majority in both the Assembly and the Senate. Perata said hearings on the compacts could begin as soon as next week, though that couldn't be confirmed Thursday. ''The compacts are done and they are waiting'' for action, Perata said. ''We are just going to move them through.'' The compacts stalled last year because of labor and horse racing issues, with unions wanting revisions of collective bargaining provisions and track owners seeking compensation for losses they blame on tribal casinos. Labor and track representatives have said they don't oppose the compacts if their own needs are met, and Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, has said the compacts should be renegotiated. He also has raised other issues, including the state's ability to garnishee the wages for child support from deadbeat parents employed by casinos and the ability to audit tribal books. The tribes and the governor have refused to reopen them beyond last year's negotiations, instead urging legislative approval. The governor is expecting to receive $500 million for his 2007-08 budget from the expanded gambling operations authorized by the compacts. Perata stressed that the Legislature ''can't modify those compacts. We can only vote up or down. ''If people feel strong enough that the labor provision should be changed, then they have to vote 'No,','' he added. But he predicted mostly success in the Senate. ''I think most of them look like they will have sufficient votes because they are only majority vote bills,'' Perata said.
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