Along with the seer’s advice to the Trojans to beware Greeks bearing gifts might be the addendum: Don’t ask your greatest enemy whether your casino should be closed during a pandemic.
California Gaming Association, which represents California’s card clubs, has urged Governor Gavin Newsom to close down the state’s tribal casinos as he has closed down the card clubs. CGA President Kyle Kirkland says Newsom can ignore the part about the tribes being sovereign because of the wording in a tribal state gaming compact that says:
“The Tribe shall not conduct Class III Gaming in a manner that endangers the public health, safety, or welfare, provided, however, that nothing herein shall be construed to make applicable to the Tribe any state laws or regulations governing the use of tobacco.”
He wrote, “We believe you have the authority to order ALL casino operations, including tribal casinos, to cease operations in the affected counties.”
Different compacts have different wording, so it is unclear which tribe’s compact this wording comes from. Or whether it is contained in all of them.
Indian casinos in the Golden State began reopening in May—against the governor’s wishes.
Kirkland told Casino.org: “This is a contract, right? This is an agreement between the state and the tribes to offer gaming within our state. So the deal is you need to adhere to the contract, and if the governor feels like there’s a real health and safety risk, we need pull this back. My read of it is that he can do it.”
If Newsom were to try that, he would undoubtedly be met in court by dozens of federal lawsuits filed by the tribes.
Kirkland is certainly not losing anything by suggesting that the tribes be forced to close along with his casino and that of his associates. The tribes and the card clubs couldn’t be more at odds. The tribes insist the card clubs are violating the state constitution by illegally conducting “California Games” with the same dealer and the card clubs say the tribes are trying to close them down.
Numerous efforts in the legislature to patch up a truce or even just peaceful co-existence have failed.
The issue could be settled—and not the way the card clubs would like—by a ballot measure that would, besides legalizing sports betting for tribes but not for card clubs—would make it easier for tribes to sue card clubs in civil court. That measure could be on the 2020 ballot if the tribes gather enough signatures.
Kirkland’s letter comes when several tribal casinos have been criticized by anonymous persons claiming to be employees who say they fear casinos are not a safe place to work during the Covid-19 pandemic.
