Interesting reading: Bert Johnson from Paula Hart — Compact Letter 6.16.10.
off-reservation gaming
Hearing on Little River Band Off-Rez Gaming Compact Delayed
From Indianz:
A hearing on the off-reservation casino sought by the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians has been delayed.
The Michigan House Regulatory Reform Committee held an initial hearing on the project on May 26. Additional hearings were scheduled but they were canceled.
“I don’t get why they’re holding this up,” Rep. Doug Bennett (D), who supports the casino, told The Muskegon Chronicle.
The new hearing probably won’t be held until the end of this month or in early July, an aide to Rep. Bert Johnson, the chairman of the committee, told the paper. The location hasn’t been determined either although it will be held somewhere in the Muskegon area.
The tribe wants to build the casino at a former racetrack in Fruitport Township, near Muskegon. The site is about 80 miles from the tribe’s headquarters but it’s within the tribe’s nine-county service area.
The Saginaw Chippewa Tribe, the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi Indians and the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians oppose the project. They say the Little River Band violated the terms of the original Class III compact by not seeking approval from other tribes for an off-reservation casino.
Get the Story:
State House group to have casino proposal hearing here (The Muskegon Chronicle 6/15)
Little River Compact Amendment Stalled in House
From the Muskegon Chronicle via Pechanga:
FRUITPORT TOWNSHIP — A month ago, a resolution by the state Legislature that would allow for a casino in Fruitport Township seemed to be destined for quick passage.
The resolution — allowing the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians to operate a casino at the former Great Lakes Downs racetrack site — has hit a snag in the state House of Representatives. A vote on the resolution has yet to be taken, a committee hearing concerning the resolution is planned for the coming weeks in Lansing and the House speaker — who is also a candidate for governor — is taking some heat from locals.
State Rep. Doug Bennett, D-Muskegon Township, and Fruitport Township Supervisor Brian Werschem are blaming House Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford, for the delay. Area lawmakers expect the resolution to pass if and when it reaches the House floor for a vote.
On the Senate side, Gerald Van Woerkom, R-Norton Shores, said he will not oppose the resolution.
Bennett said typically the speaker sends resolutions directly to the House floor for a vote rather than referring them to a committee.
“There’s nobody holding it up but the speaker,” Bennett said.
“Andy Dillon is intentionally stonewalling this project,” Werschem said.
Update on Tohono O’odham Nation Suit re: Off-Reservation Fee to Trust
Previous post with complaint here. The Gila River Indian Community has attempted to intervene in opposition to TON’s off-rez fee to trust application/suit.
Updated materials here:
DCT Order Denying Motion to Transfer
USA Response to TON Motion for Summary Judgment
City of Glendale Motion for Summary Judgment
Gila River Motion to Intervene
Gila River Proposed Opposition to TON Motion for Summary Judgment
Federal Court Dismisses Some of Opposition Groups Claims re: Buffalo Casino
Here are the materials in Citizens against Casino Gambling in Erie v. Hogen (W.D. N.Y.) (via Indianz):
CACGEC Opposition to NIGC Motion
Op/Ed Favoring Little River Band Gaming Compact
From the Muskegon Chronicle via Pechanga:
It’s becoming more of a sure bet Muskegon County will see construction of a casino in its near future.
With the governor’s approval of amendments to the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians’ tribal compact and Fruitport Township’s and Muskegon County’s approval of the 36-page Municipal Services Agreement last week, there are only a few hurdles left.
The Chronicle Editorial Board urges our state lawmakers to shepherd the plan to build at the former Great Lakes Downs site through the Legislature. All three — representatives Mary Valentine, D-Norton Shores, and Doug Bennett, D-Muskegon Twp., and Sen. Gerald Van Woerkom, R-Norton Shores — have indicated they will support the move that could eventually create up to 1,100 new jobs in Muskegon County.
The Legislature must agree with Gov. Granholm’s approval of a change in the tribal compact and the Little River Band needs approvals from the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Department of the Interior. The tribe is expected to ask that 60 acres of its 233-acre site in Fruitport Township be placed in a “trust” for casino development.
The Editorial Board also urges Congressman Pete Hoekstra, R-Holland, and U.S. senators Carl Levin, D-Detroit and Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing to help this proposal sail through the approval process in Washington, D.C.
Federal lawmakers also should push highway officials to fund construction of an interchange at I-96 and Sternberg. The development of the interchange will be key to the continued growth of tourism and retail businesses in that area. Muskegon County has waged a 25-year campaign for the improvement and it has waited long enough.
With the construction of the casino and proper highway access, Muskegon County could become a year-round tourism destination, a definite boost in efforts to diversify the area economy and create permanent jobs in business serving casino visitors.
However, the Editorial Board continues to draw the line against a casino in downtown Muskegon or multiple casinos in the county.
Tohono O’odham Nation v. Salazar Complaint and Materials
This involves off-reservation gaming in Glendale, Arizona (Indianz article here).
Here:
News Coverage of Little River Band Casino Agreement for Muskegon
From the Ludington Daily News via Pechanga:
FRUITPORT TWP. — The Little River Band of Ottawa Indians and Gov. Jennifer Granholm have reached an agreement helping clear the way for development of a gaming facility just outside of Muskegon, the tribe announced Friday.
Granholm and the tribal government have reached agreement on two compact amendments that bring the tribe one step closer to building the casino on the site of the former Great Lakes Downs Racetrack, property the tribe now owns. The amendments will allow the tribe to go forward with the process of placing a small portion of the property into trust with the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA).
A third compact amendment is proceeding to both houses of the Michigan Legislature regarding changing the definition of “Eligible Indian Lands” under section 2 (B) (1). Both houses will need to approve this additional amendment in order for the project to move forward. The first two amendments did not require legislative approval.
Granholm encouraged the legislature to approve the remaining compact amendment, the press release stated.
“In short, neither the state nor the local units of government in Muskegon County will realize the benefit of the additional revenue sharing and the attendant economic development represented by this project unless the Legislature adopts the necessary resolutions concurring in the Third Amendment,” she stated, adding, the project is, “…in the best interests of the state and the public …”
Tribal Ogema Larry Romanelli, a Muskegon area resident, said, “Muskegon has been hard hit in recent years and I am so pleased that our tribe has the opportunity to provide some hope and help to all of our people, tribal and non-tribal, at this time.”
D.C. Circuit Briefing in Butte County v. Hogen (Skibine)
We reported on the lower court case, a challenge to off-reservation fee to trust for gaming purposes, here.
Briefs:
NYTs Editorial on the Shinnecock Recognition
Pathetic. Rank hypocrisy, at the very least.
From the NYTs:
More than 200 years late — 31 if you count from the tribe’s petition — the federal government has acknowledged that the Shinnecocks of Southampton, Long Island, are an Indian tribe. Settling that question raises new ones. The Shinnecocks will almost certainly try to build a casino — they have been lobbying as hard for one as they have for recognition — but how big, and where?
The “where” is an especially interesting question. Casinos are usually built on reservation land. The Shinnecocks live on the East End of Long Island, a national depository of wealth, privilege and privacy. When the tribe jumped the gun a few years back and bulldozed part of its property for a bingo hall, the not-in-my-backyard opposition erupting from the dunes and privet hedges was ferocious. And that was just a skirmish.
That is probably why the Shinnecocks are exploring other sites in Suffolk County, at two New York racetracks and in the Catskills. But building an off-reservation casino is itself fraught with uncertainty and regulatory hurdles. The tribe could end up spending many years and lots of money chasing something that is a guaranteed winner only for lobbyists and consultants.
Casinos are also a magnet for tainted money and a handmaiden to addiction, crime and other social ills. That is why we would urge the tribe to spend its energy on finding other ways to leverage its valuable real estate.
A casino is, after all, only a means to an end — to economic vitality, greater respect, a better future for the tribe’s 1,000 members. The Shinnecocks are now in a much better position to pursue that dream. Lack of federal status did more than hamper the tribe’s quest for gambling riches. It also denied it access to federal programs for housing, health care and education.
The Shinnecocks have a long, proud history of self- governance, and advantages that poorer, more remote tribes can only dream of: geography, bargaining power and the support of state officials including Gov. David Paterson, who endorsed their quest for recognition. The good news on recognition would be even better if the tribe could foresee a future apart from slots and dice.
Turtle Talk 
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