Tavern owners meet, approach Council on gaming concerns

By Maggie Plummer

With the November 30 gaming compact deadline only eight weeks away, local tavern owners and others are more and more worried about the economic impacts of a potential Class III gaming shutdown on the Flathead Reservation.

If a class III compact is not worked out by the Tribes and the State by Nov. 30, the federal government will shut down all class III gaming on the reservation. Class III includes poker and keno machines, sales of state lottery tickets, game pools, shake-a-day, shake-for-the-music, and more.

Tavern owners say they're worried about having to lay off workers, and about gaming-generated revenue for local schools, towns and charities.

Responding to the current stalemate in the gaming negotiations, Representative Jeanne Windham contacted the Lake County Tavern Association (LCTA) to see if anything could be done to ease the situation.

The tavern owners held a meeting last Wednesday, Sept. 27, in Ronan. The following day a group of them also approached Tribal Council with their concerns.

"As far as I'm concerned, it's an economic crisis," Windham told the group during the LCTA meeting. "We need to get the state serious...I think they need to hear our input...I'll go to Helena with you."

Windham gathered information from the tavern owners on the expected economic impact of losing class III gaming on the reservation. She took an informal poll of the tavern owners at the meeting, who estimated that the area would face about 104 layoffs if the gaming is shut down.

However, other gaming observers who prefer to stay anonymous point out that the state requires a liquor license for non-tribal gaming establishments, and all of the bars were already in existence before gaming. The only exception to that, the source said, is Lucky Lil's, whose parent corporation can reportedly move employees to other locations or other parts of the company's operations.

The tavern owners say they don't care how many machines the tribes have, they just want to keep their Class III gaming. They voted unanimously to urge the State and Tribes to grant an open extension of the current gaming agreement, so there would be no class III gaming shutdown while they negotiate.

The next day, Lori and Alan Grenier were on the Tribal Council agenda, and several tavern owners attended that meeting.

Tribal Chairman James Steele, Jr. gave the group a letter saying that the ball is in Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer's court, and suggesting that they go to the Governor with their concerns.

Steele told the group that it seems to him that the Tribes get blamed if the Tribes and State don't agree. "Please don't perpetuate that," he said. "It's inaccurate." He and others noted that at least one local TV station has erroneously reported that the "Tribes were shutting down gaming."

Steele told the group that "we believe the majority of the gaming revenue from this reservation should come through the Tribes." He added that "we have also talked about the Tribes regulating gaming on the reservation."

Tribal officials feel that "we've put our best foot forward," the chairman continued. "The response from the State is not very encouraging. We expect the other side to at least try to address the issues, with a reasonable response. We feel the state's response is not reasonable."

Lori Grenier told the Chairman that "we as business people wonder, why not have an open-ended extension so that we can continue on (with class III gaming)." Steele suggested that she put that on paper and send it to both the Tribes and the State.

He further pointed out that "the gorilla in the room is the inequity, the money the State garners from reservation gaming, compared to what the Tribes garner from the gaming on this reservation."

The state limits the number of tribal machines, as well as maximum bet and payout amounts, under the compact. Tribal officials think that's unfair, and want more control over those areas. They're proposing that the Tribes be allowed to increase machine numbers, maximum bets and payouts as market conditions warrant.

"It would be what the market could handle," the Chairman explained.

The problem is, the State hasn't offered any counter proposal at all, Steele said. "The State needs to sit down and treat us like government-to-government. We are unique in the nation. Other Tribes don't have non-Indian gaming operators or individual tribal operators on their reservation."

Councilman Ron Trahan said that "the problem is, we're sitting there negotiating with ourselves."

Lori Grenier told the Chairman that she plans on going to the Governor.

"Let us know, please invite us (if you're going)," Steele said. "We'd love to sit down with him." He also asked Lori where the rest of the legislators are, besides Jeanne Windham.

"We are not interested in seeing the Class III gaming operations on this reservation cease," he told the group in no uncertain terms. "Let's develop Class II AND have Class III. We feel that having both Class II and III is in the best interest of the community."

Steele offered a letter of support from the Tribal Council, if it would help Lori and the other tavern owners get in to see Governor Schweitzer.

A call from the Char-Koosta News to the Governor's office was returned last week by Deanne Sandholm, legal counsel for the Governor's Budget and Program Planning Office. Sandholm is negotiating with the Tribes on behalf of the State.

She said that her office's policy is to not discuss ongoing negotiations, and she declined to comment on the current status of gaming negotiations with the Tribes.