San Rafael, CA - Assemblymember Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) has authored a bill, AB 1741, that will provide that legislative ratification of a compact for gaming on land that was taken into trust by the United States on behalf of an Indian tribe on or after January 1, 2008, and on which gaming was not being lawfully conducted on the date of ratification, shall not be effective unless one or both of the following occur:

1)  the voters of the county or counties in which the land is located have approved the compact;

2)  one or more intergovernmental agreements have been executed by the tribe and certain cities, counties, or cities and counties, as specified.

The required intergovernmental agreements in the bill would be required to include provisions for mitigating the impacts of a proposed gaming activity, including huge increases in traffic congestion, crime, air pollution, greenhouse gas emissions and groundwater degradation.

“It is important that the Legislature not approve compacts for gaming if the residents, businesses and governments in the area do not support having a massive Las Vegas-style casino in their community,” Huffman said.  “And, it is just as important that these compacts not be approved unless the negative impacts of a casino development are completely mitigated.”

The Governor is authorized to negotiate compacts, subject to ratification by the Legislature, for the operation of slot machines and for the conduct of lottery games and banking and percentage card games by federally recognized Indian tribes on Indian lands in California.

In 2005, the Governor issued a proclamation on tribal gaming policy stating that he would consider whether a local jurisdiction and local community in which the tribe’s proposed gaming project is located supports the project.

“AB 1741 would force the Legislature to look more carefully at these proposed compacts and the impacts they would have on our communities,” Huffman concluded.