Stand Up for California! is a statewide organization with a focus on gambling issues including tribal gaming, card clubs, horse racing, charitable gaming and the state lottery.

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County and Tribe Reach Agreement:

  • Sonoma County OKs new River Rock Casino
    3/19/2008, San Francisco Chronicle
    The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors approved a deal Tuesday to allow the tribe that operates the River Rock Casino near Geyserville to build a hotel and casino resort on its hilltop land. By a vote of 4 to 1, the board endorsed a 12-year agreement with the Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians that will provide the county government up to $100 million - which represents a small share of the tribe's casino and hotel revenues. The River Rock Entertainment Authority has posted yearly casino revenues of about $140 million. The deal, which caps years of litigation and months of recent talks involving the tribe, county leaders and Alexander Valley residents, also guarantees there will be no casino built in the near future on tribal land just south of Petaluma.

  • County, casino reach revenue-sharing deal
    3/19/2008, THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
    Sonoma County supervisors and the Pomo Indian tribe running River Rock casino reached a revenue-sharing compromise Tuesday, although not without a fair number of county officials grumbling about accommodating the gambling structure.On a 4-1 vote, supervisors approved an agreement in which the tribe would contribute about $100 million during the next 12 years to pay for road improvements, firefighting and law enforcement, impacts attributable to the development of the casino. Although the casino has been churning out gambling revenues in the hills above Geyserville since 2003, tribe and county officials have been locked in legal battles over zoning, liquor licensing and fire inspection access and, until now, unable to reach agreement.

    • Tracking the Recognition Process:

  • Artman Issues Final Determination to Decline Acknowledgment
    3/12/2008, US Dept. of Interior - Office of the Secretary
    NOTE: This is a Washington State Tribe, but this action demonstrates the efforts of the current administration to adhere to the regulations. Under 25 CFR Part 83, the regulations that govern the Federal Acknowledgment Process, failure by a petitioning group to meet seven mandatory criteria will result in the group not being acknowledged as an Indian tribe. The available evidence demonstrates that this petitioner does not meet four of the seven mandatory criteria as set forth in 25 CFR Part 83.7.

    • Upcoming Hearing

    Public Scoping Hearing:Off Reservation Proposal - Manzanita Band in the City of Calexico.  March 27,  BOS Chambers Imperical County, 940 W. Main St., El Centro. 6pm to 9pm. Or mail comments to Amy Dutschke, acting Regional Director, Pacific Regional Office, BIA, 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento, CA. 92825

    Upcoming Conference

    North American Regulators Association June 10-13, 2008   www.nagra.org  Register on Line.

    LINKS and Legislation

    Stand Up For California - Library

    Stand Up For California - Helpful Links

    ###HYPERLINK "http://www.standupca.org/links.asp"

    State Legislation to Watch

    AJR 39 -  Assembly Member Huffman

    Reaffirmation of the Winneman Wintu.

    AB 1314 -Assembly Member Strikland

    BINGOAn Act to amend section 326.5 of the California Penal Code.

    AB 1328 - Assembly Member Cedillo

     Internet BINGO

    AB 1924 - Assembly Member Jeffries

    Changes the amount of charitable BINGO  funds that may be used for overhead and other operational expenses.

    AB 2026 - Assembly Member  Levine -

    The California Gambling Control in conjunction with the Department of Justice, shall perform a study and report its findings to the legislature by June 30, 2009, regarding authorizing interstate Internet Poker.

    SB 331 -Sen.  Romero - Imposes a state mandated local program to address tresspassers on tribal lands

    SB 996 Sen. Florez - This bill would require each tribal state gaming compact entered into between the State of California and a federally recognized Indian Tribe to be ratified by the Legislature in Separate Statute.  

    SB 1201 - Sen. Battin Increases the aggregate limit of gaming devices licenses available for issuance under the 1999 compacts to 122,000 slot machines without tribal state compact renegotiations.

     SB 1695 - Sen. Florez - This bill limits the locations of tribal casinos.  Does it limit the political power of local elected?

    SCA 20 -Sen.  Vincent - Constitutional Amendment authorizes Roulette and Craps on California Indian lands for compact tribes.

     

    Federal Legislation to Watch 

    Last sessions legislation rumored to have legs.

    H. R. 3709To authorize inter-tribal transfers of authority in leases between the Ewiiaapaayp Band of Kumeyaay and the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay, and for other purposes. (Introduced in House October 1, 2007)

    S. 1347 - Sentaor Feinstein: A bill to amend the Omnibus Indian Advancement Act to modify the

    date as of which certain tribal land of the Lytton Rancheria of California is deemed to be held in trust and to provide for the conduct of certain activities on the land.  Passed the Senate 11-6-07 and sent to the House.

    Rule Making

    http://thomas.loc.gov/

    Guidance on taking off reservation land into trust for gaming purposes
    Jan 3, 2008,     Carl Artman, Asst. Secretary of the Interior, BIA

    http://www.standupca.org/Reports/E7-20776.pdf