A non-federally recognized tribe that last month unsuccessfully tried to persuade the state that a clerical error by the Secretary of State’s office entitled it to build a casino, has now gone to court to sue for that right. Or rather, it has sued to stop the Mashantucket Pequots and the Mohegan Indians from building a third, satellite casino near Hartford.
The Schaghticoke Tribal Nation has joined forces with MGM, which has also sued to stop the two established gaming tribes. Representing the tribe will be former Senator and vice presidential candidate Joe Lieberman, who once as U.S. senator fought the tribe’s attempt to achieve federal recognition. When in the Senate Lieberman sponsored a bill to help communities oppose BIA transfers of fee land to trust land, and tried to impose a moratorium on federal recognition of tribes. He is a member of the New York City law firm of Kasowitz, Benson, Torres & Friedman.
Schaghticoke Chief Richard Velky announced the lawsuit last week. The suit will contend that the state law that allows the two tribes to site a casino host community is unconstitutional because it excludes his tribe from the process.
Velky stated, “Without any competitive bidding or gaming study, Connecticut shut out [the Schaghticokes] and awarded to one pair of native American tribes the exclusive ability to develop a highly-valuable commercial enterprise. Under the Equal Protection clauses of both the federal and state constitutions, [the Schaghticokes] should have the same right to pursue this economic opportunity as anyone else.”
Last month the tribe filed paperwork for a limited liability corporation (LLC) created for the sole purpose of developing and operating a casino. The paperwork was initially approved and then revoked the next day by the Secretary of State’s office.
MGM filed a similar lawsuit last fall. Velky’s tribe has unsuccessful tried to obtain federal recognition, although the state recognizes it. Besides the lawsuit, MGM is agitating to get residents to demand a comprehensive economic study of the new proposed casino, including a market study.
MGM issued a statement about its new collaboration with the Schaghticokes. Spokesman Bernard Kavaler quoted Alan Feldman, MGM executive vice president, global government and industry affairs, “We’ve entered into a collaboration because we together believe that Special Act 15-7 is unconstitutional and it denies both of us a fair, equal opportunity to compete for Connecticut’s first commercial casino. The act discriminates against MGM and the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation in similar ways.”
Meanwhile MGM International rather puckishly suggested that Connecticut pay attention to a marketing report that it paid for and site its third casino in Fairfield County, which would be much farther from the MGM Springfield, 80 miles away, in fact. This location, says the study, would create more revenue and jobs that building along the border between Connecticut and the Bay State.
The report, written by Oxford Economics said that a casino Bridgeport would generate 5,734 jobs compared to 2,080 for Hartford, near the border. It says the casino would produce $70 million annually, compared to $16 million near Hartford.
“Locating a casino in southwest Connecticut would generate far greater economic benefits than locating one in north central Connecticut because southwest Connecticut offers a much deeper market,” says the report.
The Pequot and Mohegans issued a statement accused the Schaghticokes of “being bankrolled by MGM” and added, “This startling revelation – which according to the chief was a year in the making – should raise a red flag for anyone who is concerned about MGM’s plan to steal jobs from Connecticut residents.”
Currently MM4CT the consortium between erstwhile casino rivals, the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes is working with several interest host communities to build a satellite casino that would stop the hemorrhaging of money and jobs at the border. The communities being scrutinized are Hartford, East Hartford and Windsor Locks.
The two tribes reacted with this announcement by spokesman Andrew Doba, “It should surprise exactly no one that an MGM funded study finds that the best place to put a new casino is as far away as possible from MGM Springfield. our goal today is the same as it was when we started this process last year – to make sure that Connecticut jobs don’t migrate over the border to Massachusetts.”
MGM has a large financial interest in preventing the third Connecticut casino from ever coming to pass. It is building a $950 million casino resort in Springfield that all parties admit will siphon money away from that tribe’s two gaming tribes, and the state’s budget.
