Rich promises
But state needs better gambling deal
Editorial
© 2009 Bradenton Herald
Wednesday, February 04, 2009

This week Florida’s Seminole Tribe upped the ante on a gambling compact with the state by promising very big numbers in job creation, economic development and state revenue.

Talk about temptation during a recession.

Rep. Bill Galvano will have a prime seat at the negotiating table, as acting chair of the House Select Committee on Seminole Indian Compact Review.

Last week the Bradenton Republican talked to the Herald’s Editorial Board about the challenges with the coming talks.

That was before the tribe dealt out a strong hand on Monday by announcing in Tallahassee that passage of the deal Gov. Charlie Crist made in 2007 would bring 45,000 new jobs and pump $4.5 billion into the state’s economy upon completion of a grand expansion of hotels and casinos.

The Seminoles also held out an offer of an immediate $288 million deposit into state coffers. With a $3.5 billion gap in the 2009-2010 state budget now under consideration in House committees, the enticement will be great to take the money. Once strong opposition to gambling in the House is weakening, too.

But as we have opined and as Galvano stated, can a better deal be negotiated?

As we’ve stated before, we do not support gambling and would rather Florida remain a family-friendly vacation destination. But federal law allows tribes to offer games already legal in a state, and once South Florida voters approved slots, that opened the door for the Seminoles.

But the tribe also got Crist to approve house-banked card games, including blackjack and baccarat. While the state Supreme Court struck down Crist’s compact as exceeding his authority, the Seminoles went ahead and began dealing cards.

Galvano opposes card games since they are illegal in Florida. The state attorney general is petitioning the federal government’s National Indian Gaming Commission to withdraw approval for those games.

The other major issue is the fiscal ramifications for generations to come, and Galvano is rightly concerned about crippling the state’s parimutuel industry, one of the largest in the country.

Federal law forbids states from taxing tribes. In the compact, the Seminoles agreed to revenue sharing. The parimutuel industry, on the other hand, pays a 50 percent tax rate on slots — and the slot operators in Miami-Dade and Broward are operating at a loss, representatives say.

Galvano’s concern is a more level playing field, and a lower tax rate is on the table. He also suggests other incentives for the private industry to reinvest in the state.

Florida’s parimutuel industry — the dog and horse tracks and jai alai frontons — should not be crippled by a tribal compact.

We also support Galvano on tighter regulations than Crist negotiated, covering audits, background checks and operating hours.

These will be tough and delicate negotiations.

The sticking point will be house-banked card games. No doubt the Seminole Tribe does not want to give those lucrative table games up. Plus, Crist signed away exclusive statewide rights to blackjack, a terrible deal.

If somehow the state cannot get these games out of tribal casinos, through the courts or federal government, exclusivity should not be granted.

The promise of great riches for the state do not outweigh possible permanent damage to the parimutuel industry. Galvano and his House colleagues should win a better deal.