gaming – Page 126 – Turtle Talk

Michigan Senate Approves Gun Lake Gaming Compact – What Next?

February 11, 2009February 11, 2009bnewland2 Comments

Cross-posted with American Indian Policy Blog.

The Michigan State Senate voted to approve the Tribal-State Gaming Compact between the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish (Gun Lake) Band of Potawatomi Indians and the State of Michigan. The Gun Lake Band reached agreement on this compact with Governor Jennifer Granholm in 2007, and the Michigan House of Representatives approved this agreement by resolution – consistent with its practice of approving gaming compacts by resolution – later that year.

Interestingly, the Senate acted today in a new legislative session, which began on January 14, 2009. The House of Representatives’ approval of this compact occurred in the previous legislative session. Will the Gun Lake Band return to the House of Representatives, which is under the same leadership as in 2007 when it originally approved the compact, for another approval in this legislative session? Or, will the Band make the argument that since both houses of the Legislature have given their approval, the compact is now in effect?

From Gongwer News Service:

Senate Approves Gun Lake Compact
On a voice vote the Senate has approved the state’s compact with the Gun Lake tribe of Pottawatomie Indians, effectively the last state hurdle towards the tribe building and opening a casino.

The Senate approved SR 11 without debate, though opponents outlined their objections afterwards. The chamber, which had held off acting on approving the compact reached with Governor Jennifer Granholm in 2006, acted a few weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal to block the casino.

Conner & Taggart on the Impact of Gaming on New Mexico Tribes

February 9, 2009Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

Thaddieus W. Conner and William A. Taggart have published “The Impact of Gaming on the Indian Nations of New Mexico” in the Social Science Quarterly (conner-taggart-the-impact-of-gaming-on-nm-tribes). Here is the abstract:

Objective.

This study examines the economic and social impact of Indian gaming on the residents of the 22 pueblos and tribes in New Mexico.

Method.

We employ a naturally occurring quasi-experimental design that classifies each of the Indian Nations into one of two groups, gaming and nongaming, depending on the continuous operation of a “Las Vegas” style casino for multiple years in the 1990s. For these two groups we compare aggregate, primarily U.S. Census, data spanning 25 indicators in both 1990 and 2000.

Results.

Although improvements were evident for both groups, nine of the 12 economic measures and six of the 13 social measures revealed a growing disparity favoring gaming nations during the 1990s, while six other measures suggested declining but continuing differences. These findings persisted in light of controls for population and urbanization, though many of the economic differences disappeared for the rural nations.

Conclusion.

Gaming has had a positive economic and social impact on the gaming pueblos and tribes in New Mexico, especially for the more urbanized nations. The gaming nations are enjoying higher incomes, lower levels of poverty, and improvements in selected social areas compared to those nations opting not to pursue casino gaming in the 1990s.

Gun Lake Band Casino Financing Should Not Be Affected by Stations Casino’s Bankruptcy

February 9, 2009February 9, 2009Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From the Vegas Review-Journal:

While Station Casinos plans to file for bankruptcy in March, a joint venture of the casino company plans to seek financing and break ground within weeks on a $200 million American Indian casino in Michigan.

Station Casinos spokeswoman Lori Nelson said its tribal gaming contracts wouldn’t be affected by the restructuring because contracts are held separately from the casino company’s financing structure.

Station Casinos announced late Tuesday its plans for prepackaged bankruptcy pending approval from investors holding $2.3 billion of the company’s $5.4 billion debt load.

Dennis Farrell Jr., a bond analyst for Wachovia Capital Markets, agreed the pending bankruptcy would not affect financing for the new casino.

“It will be financed on its own and Stations will help support the project,” said Farrell, adding that the company will collect a management fee once the casino opens.

***The Michigan casino was able to move ahead when a 10-year legal struggle by the Gun Lake Tribe, also known as the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi, ended Jan. 30. At that time, the U.S. Department of Interior authorized the placing of 146 acres into trust. That move was made possible when the U.S. Supreme Court decided Jan. 21 not to hear an opposition group’s petition to block the casino.

The tribe’s gaming compact should be voted on in the Michigan Legislature in the next few weeks, tribe spokesman James Nye said.

He said the tribe plans to break ground on the casino in the next “several weeks.”

It would take nearly 16 months to convert an old 192,000-square-foot factory and warehouse into a casino with up to 2,500 slots machines, 75 table games, restaurants and a buffet.

Coushatta Tribe v. Meyer & Associates Cert Petition

February 7, 2009Matthew L.M. Fletcher

This case involves the question of whether state courts have to comply with the tribal court exhaustion doctrine. Here is the petition — coushatta-tribe-v-meyer-and-assoc-cert-petition

Here is the lower court opinion, from the Louisiana Supreme Court.

Catskill Litigation Trust v. Harrah’s Cert Petition

February 6, 2009Matthew L.M. Fletcher1 Comment

Here it is — catskill-litigation-trust-cert-petition

This was filed in mid-January, and since the SCT denied cert in the CA9 case that the petitioners claim conflicts with this one, I bet this one has no chance of being granted.

Bankruptcy Court OKs Greektown Financing

February 4, 2009Matthew L.M. Fletcher

From the Freep:

Greektown Casino can borrow the money it needs to complete its new 400-room hotel, a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge ruled today.

Judge Walter Shapero approved $22.5 million in loans, part of a $46-million financing package that the downtown casino owners say is needed to keep its general contractor on the job.

Continue reading →

Greektown Filing — Unsecured Creditors Objection to New Financing

February 4, 2009Matthew L.M. Fletcher

unsecured-creditors-objection

Greektown Bankruptcy — New Financing Filings

February 3, 2009February 3, 2009Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Looks like they need $46 million more (news article).

greektown-motion-for-additional-financing

greektown-proposed-order-re-new-financing

greektown-proposed-credit-agreement-part-1

greektown-proposed-credit-agreement-part-2

greektown-proposed-credit-agreement-part-3

greektown-proposed-credit-agreement-part-4

greektown-proposed-credit-agreement-part-5

greektown-proposed-credit-agreement-part-6

Georgetown Law Journal Article on IGRA and Sovereign Immunity

January 31, 2009Matthew L.M. Fletcher

Courtney J.A. DaCosta has published “When ‘Turnabout’ is Not ‘Fair Play’: Tribal Immunity under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act” in the Georgetown Law Journal. An excerpt:

This Note argues that federal courts have interpreted tribal immunity broadly under IGRA; that this approach, while doctrinally sound, produces several normatively undesirable consequences; and that Congress should stem these consequences by amending IGRA to restore the statute’s tribal-state power balance through abrogation of tribal immunity in certain cases.