Tribes Report Contributions To Campaign Against Referendums

Last Friday the secretary of state's office reported a $5 million contribution from the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians in the Coachella Valley; $5 million from the Morongo Band of Mission Indians near Banning; $500,000 from the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians near Temecula; and $500,000 from the Sycuan Band of Kumeyaay Indians in San Diego County. The $11 million will go to a campaign committee opposing efforts to repeal the recently amended compacts.

Opponents of the casino agreements, which the Legislature ratified in June, have until early October to collect enough voter signatures to qualify referendum measures overturning the legislation.

On the same day the tribes reported their contributions, some horse tracks and the hotel and restaurant employees union gave about $1.2 million to the campaign to qualify the referendum measures. The Pala Band of Mission Indians of north San Diego County and the United Auburn Indian Community located in the Sierra Nevada foothills of northern California have joined forces with the union and horse tracks to oppose the new gaming compacts..

Howard Dickstein, the attorney for the two tribes, said they each donated $500,000. He indicated that the tribes will remain largely uninvolved in the referendum process. ''They are not part of the campaign or committee, but are providing the funds for it,'' he said.

They need to garner 3 million signatures by Oct. 8 in order to take it to voters in February.

Dickstein also said that Pala and Auburn are concerned that additional slot machines will negatively impact small, Native-owned casinos, especially if they depend on slot players that flow to their casinos when the larger venues are busy.

In an addition to boosting state revenue, the four tribes with amended compacts have agreed to pay an annual $9 million into the state's Revenue Sharing Trust Fund, which provides money to non-gaming tribes. This doubles what the four tribes currently pay into the fund.

Both the California Nations Indian Gaming Association and the Tribal Alliance of Sovereign Indian Nations oppose the referendums.

''I personally urge Californians who are approached to sign petitions seeking to overturn these compacts to reject those efforts and support the tribes' increased payments to the state for vitally needed services,'' said CNIGA Chair Anthony Miranda, in a press release. ''If these compacts are overturned, it will remove hundreds of millions of dollars from the 2007 - 2008 budget awaiting state Senate approval.''

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