Casino deal still not reached

By Mary Ellen Klas
Herald/Times Tallahassee Bureau
© 2009 Miami Herald
Saturday, August 29, 2009

The Seminole Tribe of Florida voted to approve a gambling compact with the governor Friday at a closed-door meeting of its tribal council in Hollywood, sources close to the negotiations told the Herald/Times.

But in what may be a deal-breaker for lawmakers who must ratify the agreement, the council refused to accept some provisions sought by legislative leaders, the sources said.

Gov. Charlie Crist and the tribe have until Monday to meet the legislatively set deadline to complete an agreement to authorize slot machines, blackjack and other banked card games at its tribal casinos.

If Crist signs the agreement, he is expected to call a special session in October to have lawmakers sign off on the deal, as required by law.

The governor wouldn't comment on the tribe's decision Friday.

``Stay tuned for details Monday,'' he said at a Fort Lauderdale press conference to introduce his Senate appointee, George LeMieux.

LeMieux, Crist's former chief of staff, served as the governor's lead negotiator with the tribe.

Earlier this week, the governor and the tribe agreed to a plan to pay the state $150 million a year in exchange for operating the games at all seven of its casinos.

But that went farther than the guidelines set by the Legislature, which authorized the card games only at the tribe's Hard Rock casinos in Hollywood and Tampa and its two other casinos in Broward.

After weeks of negotiations this summer, the House's lead negotiator, Rep. Bill Galvano, agreed to give the tribe card games at its Immokalee casino, but in turn wanted to allow for the option of casino games to be offered in Palm Beach County, Jacksonville and North Florida if legislators or voters approved them.

The tribe rejected that condition.

Galvano could not be reached late Friday to react the Seminole tribe council decision.

He said earlier this week that if the tribe failed to agree to the changes legislators sought and came back with a compact that ``deviates significantly from where we intended to go,'' the Legislature would be unlikely to accept it.

Mary Ellen Klas can be reached at meklas@MiamiHerald.com