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.

Letter of Comment on United Auburn Indian Community DEIS
April 1, 2008, Stand Up For California
Pomo tribe seeks new casino
4/1/2008, Record-Bee - Lake County
LAKE COUNTY -- A Pomo Indian tribe with strong ties to Lake County is honing in on its goal after a four-year battle to receive approval from the feds for a casino plan on property in unincorporated Contra Costa County near North Richmond. After 30 days for the public to weigh in on a final environmental impact statement the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs announced Friday it will file, the next step could be a federal decision on whether the Bay Area site qualifies as "restored land." Restored land is what the Scotts Valley Pomo tribe claims the land is as part of the tribe's 10,000-plus page application to build the planned 225,000-square foot casino and five-story parking structure on approximately 30 acres the tribe's investors purchased.
County Supervisors Play Key Role in NACo Legislative Conference
3/7/2008, California State Association of Counties
Forty-eight county supervisors were among the more than 100 California county officials registered for this year's National Association of Counties (NACo) Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C., and they played a key role in many of the policy committee deliberations that occurred during this meeting. Yolo County Supervisor Mike McGowan shepherded a CSAC-sponsored resolution dealing with tribal gaming through NACo's Finance and Intergovernmental Affairs Committee. The resolution is now set to be heard by the NACo Board of Directors at the Western Interstate Regional (WIR) conference in St. George, Utah, in May. Supervisor McGowan received strong support for the resolution, which included requirements for early and meaningful consultation with local government before non-reservation lands are taken into trust by the federal government. Supervisor McGowan also led a team of California supervisors in a meeting with senior Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) officials. Included in the meeting were supervisor Susan Adams, Marin County; Victor Carrillo and Wally Leimgruber, Imperial County; John Gioia, Contra Costa County; Bill Connelly, Butte County; and Paul McIntosh, CSAC Executive Director. The meeting focused again on issues surrounding the taking of non-reservation land into trust and the need for early, meaningful consultation and inclusion of local governments impacted by that decision. The meeting was encouraging and BIA officials expressed sincere interest in taking these issues into account in their regulations.
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Upcoming Hearings

Public Comment deadline: Expansion of facility - Draft Environmental Impact Report presented by United Auburn Indian Community. C/O: AES 1801 7th St., Suite 100, Sacramento, CA. 95811.  Written comments will be accepted through April 10, 2008.

Public Comment deadline: Off Reservation Proposal - Manzanita Band in the City of Calexico.  Mail comments to Amy Dutschke, acting Regional Director, Pacific Regional Office, BIA, 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento, CA. 92825. Written comments will be accepted through April 7, 2008.

Public Scoping Hearing: Off Reservation Proposal - April 9, 2008, 6 p.m., Elks Lodge in Marysville, 920 D. Street.  The hearing is for public input related to the enterpise Rancheria proposed fee to trust land acquistion of 40 acres and the subsequent development of an off reservation casino resort complex in Yuba County. Mail comments to Amy Dutschke, acting Regional Director, Pacific Regional Office, BIA, 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento, CA. 92825. Written comments will be accepted through May 5, 2008.
 
Public Comment Deadline:  Off Reservation Proposal,
Comments on the Final EIS for the Scotts Valley Casino in the City of Richmond. Mail comments to Amy Dutschke, acting Regional Director, Pacific Regional Office, BIA, 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento, CA. 92825. Written comments will be accepted through April 28, 2008.
 

Upcoming Conference

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

LINKS and Legislation

archive

Stand Up For California - Library

Stand Up For California - Helpful Links

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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 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.

AB 62 - Sen. Florez - Permits the transfer of funds from the General Fund to the Revenue Sharing Trust Fund for eligible recipient tribes should there be insufficient funds in the Special Distribution Fund.

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 1328 - Sen.  Cedillo - deletes the $250 limitation on bingo game payouts, thereby allows for an award of any denomination. (currently limit $250.00 per pot)
SB - 1570 - Sen. Vincent - Requires the Governor to use best efforts to enusre that satellite wagering on horese racing is one of the forms of gaming offered at any gambling facility authorized under a compact.  
SB 1626 - Sen. Steinberg - Regulates the game of BINGO.
SB 1679 - Sen. Florez - Lottery Reform Bill:  requires that not less than 87% of revenues be used for prizes and to benefit education, 13% for lottery expenses. Total revenue to education will be decided by the Commission but not less than 1,200,000,000. Requires 1 million to be committed to the Office of Problem and Pathological gambling. Defines, expands and loosens restrictions of lottery game themes.

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 

H.R. 5608 Congressman Rahall - mandates that adminstration directly consults with tribes on policies that directly affect their lives.
 
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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

 
Proposed Rule - Secretarily Approval of Compacts within 45 Days
Feb. 11, 2008, Asst. Secretary - Carl Artman - Dept. of the Inter
 
Notice of Approval of Class III Tribal Gaming Ordinances
3/30/2008, Federal Register 3-17-2008 NIGC
SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice is to inform the public of class III gaming ordinances approved by the Chairman of the National Indian Gaming Commission. EFFECTIVE DATE: This notice is effective upon date of publication in the Federal Register.