Obama Administration Backs Carcieri v. Salazar "Fix"

On the eve of a presidential gathering with tribes from around the country the Obama administration has come out in favor of legislation to “fix” the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Carcieri v. Salazar.

In its February 24 decision of this year, the Supreme Court restricted the land-into-trust to tribes that were "under federal jurisdiction" as of 1934, when the Indian Reorganization Act was passed, but Kim Teehee, the White House Senior Policy Advisor for Native American Affairs, said that "All tribes" should be able to benefit from the land-into-trust process regardless of the date of federal recognition.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said the administration is working with Congress on the issue. Three bills have been introduced in the House and the Senate to ensure all tribes can follow the land-into-trust process.

In a conference call Salazar said, "There is a problem here that has to be fixed.”

The House Natural Resources Committee held a hearing yesterday to discuss the matter.

The three bills can be found here:

S.1703
H.R.3697
H.R.3742

Show Me The Money – Contra Costa County Will Flip For $12 million

According to a draft of a pending deal, for $12 million a year Contra Costa County is willing to flip from complete opposition over to outright support for the plans of building a major Indian casino-hotel resort on the Richmond waterfront.

Under the deal, the county would agree to "cease all efforts to oppose or intervene against the tribe's project approvals" and would document its support.

The Board of Supervisors plans to discuss the pending deal at its meeting today and likely will hold another public hearing before a decision.

The county believes if they don’t make a deal now they could be left with a weaker bargaining position once the pending decision by the feds is made.

Supervisor John Gioia said, "I think the agreement gets the community and the county more than it would get if we waited until the end of the process to negotiate.”

Of the $12 million a year the county would receive, $7 million must be spent in West County. For the first seven years, $4 million would go to health programs and services, half in West County.

Two other tribes, the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians and the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians are also seeking new and expanding casinos in the area which alarms Cheryl Schmit of Stand Up for California, a casino watchdog group.

"This certainly is a break in the dam," she said. "We have a lot of tribes out there. If it looks like Contra Costa County is an easy target, which city is next?"

Lytton Band Changes Mind On Compromise - Feinstein Bill Just About Dead

A couple years ago, Sen. Dianne Feinstein introduced a bill that, back then, drew support from the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians. The compromise bill would have locked in what the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians has now which is 1,050 electronic bingo games that mimic slot machines. But if the tribe ever decided to go for the Vegas style slots ("Class III" machines) they would have been required to go through a stringent federal process which has historically killed similar proposals.

The tribe has changed it mind fearing they would be on the short end of the stick if two other tribes win big casino projects in the area and the legislation is just about kaput.

The Senate passed Feinstein's legislation in 2007 and again in March. The first bill died last year in the House Natural Resources Committee and the current one is sitting in limbo with the same committee.

Brock Arner, city manager for San Pablo said ”My understanding is it's not moving anyplace. It would be entirely unfair to the Lytton band if there are two (Vegas-style) facilities approved in West County. Until that issue's resolved, we see no need to handcuff the Lytton band."

The city of San Pablo is opposed to Feinstein’s bill fearing it would hurt their economy.

The Scotts Valley and Guidiville bands of Pomo Indians are waiting on federal decisions on their casino bids. Guidiville wants a casino-hotel-convention center resort at the former Point Molate Naval Fuel Depot. Scotts Valley is looking to build a casino along Richmond Parkway.

The Bush administration froze those types of Indian casino applications but the tribes are hoping that the Obama administration may be more receptive.

Lytton spokesman Doug Elmets said, "The signals we have picked up say (the Obama administration is) going to look at these projects in a new light. With two casinos proposed for the Richmond area, Senator Feinstein's legislation puts Lytton at a significant competitive disadvantage."

The following is the opinion of Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-North Dakota).

The Supreme Court's decision in the recent Carcieri v Salazar case urgently needs to be corrected. The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, which I chair, heard ample evidence of that in a formal congressional hearing in May and at numerous meetings the committee conducted in the wake of the decision.

I have introduced legislation to fix the impact of that ruling. The bill would free countless tribal economic development and housing projects and other important initiatives from the legal limbo to which the court's decision assigned them.

In its Carcieri v Salazar ruling, the Supreme Court declared that the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 limited the Secretary of the Interior's authority for taking land into trust for Indian tribes. The Court said the law gives the Secretary authority to do so only for tribes recognized as of 1934. That's not what Congress intended. Then, as now, all tribes should be treated equally when the Secretary of the Interior makes decisions about placing land into trust for tribal governments.

The Secretary has been exercising his authority as intended by the Indian Reorganization Act for the past 75 years. Without correction, economic development and housing projects, and a host of other important work underway, and even projects already completed, on Indian lands taken into trust for tribes recognized after 1934 may be in legal jeopardy.

The project that launched the Carcieri v Salazar case is a good example of the ramifications of this decision, if the ruling is allowed to stand.

The Narragansett Tribe in Rhode Island was recognized by the federal government after 1934. Two thirds of its reservation cannot be developed, so when it needed to build 50 homes for tribal elders, it purchased 3 1 acres of additional land. The Secretary of the Interior accepted that land into trust for the tribe.

It was the legitimacy of that action -- accepting the land into trust -- which the Rhode Island Governor asked the court to review. The senior citizen housing project is now in jeopardy thanks to the Supreme Court's interpretation of the 1934 law.

The quickest way to correct this is to enact legislation that restores congressional intent and ensures that all tribes, regardless of when they were recognized, are treated the same with regard to the Secretary's authority to take land into trust.

That is the sole intent and effect of the bill.

Some claim that the legislation opens the door for tribes to take land into trust without review and to establish casino gaming operations when ever and where ever they wish. It does no such thing. It does nothing to change the federal regulations that govern land into trust decisions by the secretary of the Interior or the federal laws and regulations regarding establishing gaming operations on Indian lands.

My bill has one aim and one effect: to restore congressional intent and fair treatment for tribes on decisions by the Secretary of Interior regarding taking land into trust.

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”. - Albert Einstein

Puttin on my political hat for a minute…..

Where does it say in the Constitution where it’s the federal government’s job to “close the wealth gap” in our country???

Have the Dems learned nothing over the past couple years. I am starting to believe that these people are just plain evil.

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/beltway-confidential/Dems-push-expanded-Community-Reinvestment-Act-dismiss-evidence-that-CRA-contributed-to-financial-meltdown-Republicans-cite-ACORN-connection-59501737.html

Dems push expanded Community Reinvestment Act; deny Act's role in mortgage meltdown; GOP cites ACORN connectionBy:

BYRON YORK
Chief Political Correspondent
09/16/09 4:13 PM EDT

A number of experts believe that aggressive enforcement of the 1970s-era Community Reinvestment Act contributed to the mortgage meltdown, and thus to the greater financial crisis, by requiring financial institutions to lend to unqualified borrowers. Now, the Democratic majority in the House of Representatives is responding to that situation by proposing to expand the scope and power of the Community Reinvestment Act.

This morning House Financial Services Committee chairman Rep. Barney Frank held a hearing on H.R. 1479, the "Community Reinvestment Modernization Act of 2009." The bill's purpose is "to close the wealth gap in the United States" by increasing "home ownership and small business ownership for low- and moderate-income borrowers and persons of color." It would extend CRA's strict lending requirements to non-bank institutions like credit unions, insurance companies, and mortgage lenders. It would also make CRA more explicitly race-based by requiring CRA standards to be applied to minorities, regardless of income, going beyond earlier requirements that applied solely to low- and moderate-income areas.

Republicans on the committee strongly oppose the plan. "Instead of looking to expand the number of institutions that must abide by Community Investment Act regulations," California Rep. Ed Royce said in prepared opening remarks at today's hearing, "I think we should reassess the role this and other government mandates played in the financial collapse and consider scaling it back."

In private conversation, other Republicans were more emphatic. "There is clearly arguable evidence that the CRA is at the root of this financial meltdown," says one GOP committee member. "So what do they do? They try to expand CRA."

But Democrats, led by H.R. 1479 sponsor Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, claimed that expansion of CRA is much-needed. "Congress has passed a number of laws designed to combat redlining and eliminate housing discrimination," Johnson said at the hearing. "Unfortunately, we all know that redlining still occurs."

Then there is the ACORN angle. Republican critics point out that the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now has used the CRA to pressure banks to pour money into ACORN and its affiliates, allowing ACORN to facilitate loans to clearly unqualified borrowers. Now, with ACORN under fire after a series of undercover videos showing ACORN workers in Baltimore, Washington DC, New York, and California openly encouraging prostitution, tax evasion, and other crimes, Republicans on the committee are citing the CRA-ACORN connection as yet another reason the Act should not be expanded.

Johnson's bill has 51 co-sponsors, including some of the most liberal members of the House, like Reps. Dennis Kucinich, John Conyers, Bobby Rush, Steve Cohen, and Barbara Lee. Given the Democrats' tremendous numerical superiority in the House, if the majority wants to expand CRA, Republicans will be unable to stop it.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger Opposes Guidiville Band Land Acquisition

On Monday of this week Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger sent a letter to Dale Morris, Regional Director for the BIA for the Pacific Region and Gayle McLaughlin the Mayor of the City of Richmond stating his opposition to a proposed Las Vegas-style casino on Richmond's waterfront, saying the plan violates the intent of the 2000 voter-approved state law that authorized tribal gaming.

Schwarzenegger said that Proposition 1A was not meant to open the door to urban gaming, but rather limit it to a tribe's existing reservation lands, mostly located in non-urban areas.

Schwarzenegger also warned that should the land acquisition be approved it could jeopardize the legal foundation for Indian gaming in California.

The opposition by the governor could influence the Dept of Interior’s decision when it comes time to decide whether or not to grant the Guidiville Band of Pomo Indians an exception to a general ban on tribal casinos on land acquired after 1988.

Michael Derry, CEO of the Guidiville tribe's economic development team, said Tuesday that he had not seen the letter, but noted that the governor's approval was not required.

Federal law bars tribes from gaming on newly acquired lands, with a few exceptions. One requires the interior secretary to approve and the governor to concur. Another, which the Guidiville are pursuing, is the "restored lands" provision which allows tribes who lost federal recognition and their land but was later restored to federal status be allowed to establish gaming on the restored land where the governor's support is not required.

If the land is placed into trust, the governor would need to negotiate in good faith with the tribe on a gaming compact where he could stand tight to limit the casino plans, but Schwarzenegger will most likely be out of office before the time for compact negotiations if it ever gets that far.

The Guidiville band and partner Upstream Point Molate LLC proposed plans include a 240,000-square-foot casino with 124,000 square feet of gaming, a conference center, nearly 1,100 hotel rooms, restaurants, shops, tribal headquarters and a shoreline park and trail.

Supporters and opponents seem pretty evenly split with the supporters looking at all the jobs and revenue it would bring to the city, while the opponents are looking at all crime and problem gamblers it would cater too.

Same old argument…..

Regulatory Oversight Argument - State and Gaming Tribes Might Compromise

First one quick note...President Obama is sending out invitations to all 564 federally recognized tribes in the U.S. to attend a White House Tribal Nations Conference on November 5th. The president says he wants to hear directly from them about how his administration can meet their needs and help make their lives better, noting higher crime rates and poorer health among the tribes than the rest of the American population.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The State and California’s gaming tribes are getting close to an agreement in the long running fight over safeguards in the states tribal-casino industry.

In 2006 a federal court decided that the National Indian Gaming Commission, which in the past had enforced guidelines on the tribes covering everything from cash handling and counting, audits, surveillance and the games to standards of how often decks of cards should be changed, did not have the authority to regulate the casinos.

This became a big issue for Assembly Democrats during the long deadlock back in 2007 in which they refused to ratify the amended compacts for five big Southern California gaming tribes, so the state decided that they would use the California Gambling Control Commission to regulate the casinos in the absence of federal oversight.

The tribes argued that, just as the NIGC didn’t have the authority to enforce regulations, neither did the state. They also noted that they take it upon themselves and spend millions to ensure that the old NIGC regulations are enforced.

As posted last September it appeared the issue was headed for court.

Seems a break through might be on the horizon. A couple weeks ago the California Gambling Control Commission approved new “compromise” regulations, of which tribal members helped craft. Later this year, an association of tribal leaders and state officials are planning to meet and go over the regulations where a vote could come in early 2010.

At the heart of the compromise is who will enforce the rules. Under the new proposal, the state would consider the tribes in compliance if they meet or exceed the old standards set by the National Indian Gaming Commission. This would be verified by the state through an audit.

The compromise also includes a provision where tribes can reduce state involvement by allowing the National Indian Gaming Commission oversight of their casinos. About a dozen tribes have already done that.

Jerry Levine, an attorney for the Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians, said "The expectation is it will be approved."

But there are still tribes who believe any regulation by the state is illegal and going to court is still a possibility. "I know that a number of tribes still have concerns," said Scott Crowell, the Washington attorney for the Rincon Band of Luiseño Mission Indians in northern San Diego County.

NIGC to Delay “Bright Line” Regulations - Phil Hogen Resigns as Chairman

The National Indian Gaming Commission announced a couple days ago that they will delay their controversial “bright line between class II and class III” regulations for a year.

The new regulations were scheduled to go into effect next week but, according to an announcement from the commission, the work required on the new regulations had not been completed.

''Therefore, to avoid confusion as well as gaps in regulation, the commission decided to extend the effective date," the NIGC stated, adding that the new date for the regulations to go into effect is Oct. 13, 2010.

Word of the delay came days after Commission Chairman Phil Hogen, the principal force behind the new regulations, announced his retirement.

George Skibine of the Department of the Interior has been selected by Obama as the gaming commission's acting chairman.

In response to the announcement, U.S. Rep. Dan Boren, D-Okla., said, "I am very pleased NIGC has postponed the implementation of these rules. With a leadership change at NIGC currently under way, and the fact that several constituent groups across the nation have asked for more consideration of the impacts these regulations would have, now is not the time to be instituting sweeping changes to Class II gaming."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If You Can't Beat em Join em?

Officials in Contra Costa County, California, want to talk to two tribes about their proposed casinos. Although the County BOS “officially” opposes Indian gaming the cash-strapped county might enter into agreements with the two tribes in order to get a share of casino revenues.

"We're living in a reality of a service system falling apart," supervisor John Gioia told The Contra Costa Times. "Our goal is not to just mitigate the impacts (of the casino projects), but to get more."

The county meets with the Guidiville Band of Pomo Indians today. The Bureau of Indian Affairsenvironmental impact statement / environmental impact report for the tribe's proposed casino at Point Molate.

"We've been trying for a long time to get the county to see they're better off negotiating with us instead of spending a lot of lawyer time and money trying to intervene in our federal approval process," said Michael Derry, CEO of Guidiville's economic development corporation. "It's a very practical shift, actually, and a very positive shift. We don't want to impact anybody."

Big Sandy Receives 1,650 More Slots – Where Will They Put Them?

As posted last Fri, the California Gambling Control Commission was ordered to make available 10,549 slot licenses in the wake of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejection of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s appeal to hold off until next August.

This week, the Big Sandy Band of Western Mono Indians in Fresno County was awarded 1,650 of the available slot licenses. Currently, the Big Sandy operates the small Mono Wind Casino near Auberry where they have 350 slots in use, but the tribe has plans for a larger Las Vegas-style casino in the foothills east of Friant.

The plans have been in limbo for a few years now though do to money restraints. The next step is getting environmental approvals from the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs for the casino but the tribe has yet to complete an environmental impact statement.

Fresno County officials said they have not had discussions with the tribe about the project for about 2 years.

Money is another obstacle as the state requires a "prepayment fee" of $1,250 per license that is due by Oct. 12. That adds up to more than $2 million and because of confidentiality rules it is not known if Big Sandy has made the payment.

The tribe is required to have the new slots in operation within a year so they will most likely have to find a way to squeeze them into their existing small casino.

At one point Big Sandy had a deal going with Harrah's Entertainment on a $250 million casino/hotel with 2,000 slot machines but that fell through. It is not known if a new partner has stepped in as a financial partner.

Of course this could all be moot if Schwarzenegger wins his appeal of the federal court decision which has been fast tracked to Feb of next year. If he wins all these new licenses could be revoked.

9th Circuit Court Rejects Gov's Request - New Slot Licenses to be Distributed Monday

Yesterday the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a request by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to hold off issuing new slot licenses until his appeal of an August ruling is heard. The result is that new slot licenses, up to 10,549 statewide, will be distributed by the California Gambling Control Commission on Monday.

The court said it would bump up the appeal date to February, which is much sooner than normal. A Schwarzenegger spokesman said that they are confident that the court will see things their way at that time.

In their decision to allow the new slots, the court rejected a claim by state lawyers that the additional machines would cause irreparable problems such as increased traffic and crime.

Tribes will have to pay $1,250 for each slot license they get.

The San Pasqual Indian band, which operates Valley View Casino in Valley Center, will stand to receive 478 new slots to max out at 2000. Stephen Warren Solomon, a lawyer for the San Pasqual Indian band stated, “We'll put them in use as soon as possible. We're building a hotel, and we're ready to go.”

Harrah's Rincon will add 400 slots to the 1,600 it operates to reach the 2000 max limit as dictated by terms of their compact with the state.

These compacts were struck in 1999 by then-Gov. Gray Davis and required tribes to pay into a pair of funds for tribes with small or no casinos or for community impacts, and to hold good-faith negotiations with local governments.

Compacts negotiated after Schwarzenegger took office called for much bigger payments directly to the state's general fund. They also required deals with local governments.

Cheryl Schmit of Stand Up for California commenting on the addition of more slots to the tribes with the 1999 compacts said, “This is not good. There's no renegotiation to protect local government or surrounding communities. Each machine adds to traffic and crime in surrounding areas. The state loses, the citizens lose, and the tribe gains a financial benefit.”

Others say that due to the recession, casinos are actually cutting down on the number of machines they are using. Since the ruling it is estimated that only about half of the 10,549 licenses have been requested.