- Details
- By Chez Oxendine
- Gaming
Here’s our monthly roundup of tribal gaming coverage, including casino expansions, partnerships, executive changes and other news.
California may allow tribes to sue cardrooms
California legislators have sent a bill to Gov. Gavin Newsom that could open the way for tribes in the state to sue cardrooms as challenges to tribal gaming exclusivity.
On Aug. 31, the California Senate passed SB 549, or the Tribal Nations Access to Justice Act, by a 32-2 margin. The bill, which passed the state’s General Assembly unanimously, would authorize California tribes to sue cardrooms allegedly infringing on tribal gaming exclusivity in the state. According to a report from World Casino Directory, these cardrooms often use third-party providers to act as the bank in games such as baccarat and blackjack, which otherwise fall under a 2000 referendum by state voters granting tribes exclusive gaming rights in California.
Under SB 549, tribes won’t be able to seek monetary damages and must file suits authorized by the bill by April 1, 2025.
The bill has faced stiff opposition from labor unions and local governments who say they stand to lose revenue and jobs in their communities, according to media reports. Tribes have argued these effects are overstated in the face of cardrooms’ challenges to existing legal agreements. The bill’s sponsor, Josh Newman, told iGaming Business that the legislation is about “doing right by California’s Indian tribes.”
“Californians made a binding commitment in 2000 by passing a proposition which explicitly gives them an exclusive right to certain games in recognition of the historical harms to which they were subject,” Newman said.
San Francisco 49ers extend Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation partnership
The San Francisco 49ers NFL franchise has extended and expanded its partnership with the Cache Creek Casino Resort, a gaming operation owned by the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation in California.
Under the expanded partnership, which began in 2019, the Cache Creek Casino Resort has become a founding-level partner for the 49ers, and will introduce the Cache Creek Resort Field Club space to Levi’s Stadium, the 49ers’ home stadium. The space is located near the 50-yard line, providing visitors with field-level views directly behind the 49ers’ sideline.
In addition, the 49ers and Cache Creek will partner on Native American Heritage Month celebrations each November, per a news release from the tribe.
"We are ecstatic to renew our partnership with the San Francisco 49ers, a legendary sports icon in Northern California with a storied history both on and off the field," Anthony Roberts, Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation tribal chairman, said in a statement. "This collaboration is a fantastic opportunity to share the rich heritage of the Yocha Dehe with 49ers fans and to introduce them to the exceptional offerings of our Cache Creek and Séka Hills brands."
DEVELOPMENTS
Nevada-based casino operator Boyd Gaming will join in getting the Pamunkey Indian Tribe’s Norfolk, Va.-based gaming operation into development. According to a report by WHRO Public Media, Boyd Gaming will become a majority owner in Golden Eagle Consulting. The latter is a development company launched specifically to assist in building Headwaters Resort and Casino. The Pamunkey Tribe will also nab a 20% equity stake, minimum, in Golden Eagle as it tries to kickstart a troubled development cycle first approved in 2020, WHRO reports. (Tribal Business News first reported on the casino’s approval that year.)
The North Fork Rancheria has announced the groundbreaking for its North Fork Mono Casino and Resort on Sept. 7. The casino, slated for construction in Madera, Calif., will include 2,000 slot machines, 40 table games, and a 200-room hotel alongside restaurants and retail space, reports Fresno-based publication The Business Journal. The tribe began pursuing a casino operation in 2003 and received federal authorization in 2011, but administrative processes and opposition from anti-gambling groups stalled the operation for years.
NOTEWORTHY
On Aug. 12, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed new gaming compacts with the Timbisha Shoshone Tribe, the Elem Indian Colony of Pomo Indians of the Sulphur Bank Rancheria, and extended its existing compact with the Augustine Band of Cahuilla Indians. Sports publication Covers reports the new compacts authorize the Timbisha Shoshone to offer Class III games, such as slot machines and card games, at their gaming locations. The Elem Indian Colony has received authorization to add 349 gaming devices across its two gaming facilities.
Advisory firm Wipfli LLP has released its 26th Annual Indian Gaming Cost of Doing Business Report, according to a story from Indian Gaming. The report includes data from 132 tribal casinos across 18 states. In a year where tribal revenues crested $41.9 billion — an all time high, per prior Tribal Business News reporting — the Wipfli publication’s key findings point to slot machines as primary revenue drivers for tribal gaming, with marketing, promotions, and labor as the largest expenses. Notably, net profit margins decreased year-over-year, reflecting economic pressures like inflation even among record-high revenues.
GAMING PEOPLE
The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority’s South Korea enterprise, Mohegan Inspire Entertainment Resort, has appointed three new executives, per a GGRAsia report. The group announced in early September that it has appointed Julie Heo as chief legal officer, Jane Jon as chief finance officer, and Yuna Kim as associate vice president of resort sales. The move was a bid to “bring female leadership to the forefront of diverse areas of resort management,” per a company statement.
Gun Lake Casino, the gaming operation for the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians, has announced the appointment of Steve Peterson as Director of Food and Beverage Operations, Indian Gaming reports. Peterson brings 25 years of experience across 50 hotels and 130 restaurant openings to the role, per the report.
If you have news or information about Indian gaming, expansions, developments,or emerging stories, shoot me a note at [email protected].
