Editorial: Alabama voters stem gaming’s tide, for now

Monday, Oct. 25, 1999 | 9:30 a.m.

SACRAMENTO BEE

Something unexpected happened in Alabama the other day: Voters soundly rejected a lottery initiative.

When first proposed, the lottery looked like a sure winner. It was backed by the governor, who campaigned for it. Proceeds were slated to go to a pre-kindergarten program and to pay for college scholarships for Alabama students. Yet despite that and other lures, dogged opposition to the measure led by churches in the Bible Belt state defeated the lottery.

So gambling's seemingly unstoppable march through the South has hit a bump that may encompass more than Alabama. Two days after the Alabama vote, the South Carolina Supreme Court ordered that state's 34,000 video poker machines unplugged by June 30.

What impact will the Alabama vote and the South Carolina court decision have on California? California voters go to the polls in March to vote on a proposed constitutional amendment that, if approved, would legalize slot machines and house-banked games on the state's Indian lands. Gov. Gray Davis, who says he dislikes gambling personally, has negotiated gambling compacts with California tribes that would permit what he calls a "modest increase" in gambling. Yet that so-called modest increase doubles the number of slot machines now operating on Indian land to 43,000. Experts say that modest increase threatens to move California into the top ranks of gambling states in the United States, outpacing New Jersey to become second only to Nevada.

Nevada interests know that. That's why they've now teamed up with tribes in San Diego and Placer counties to bankroll and run casinos there. With its huge population, California is a rich and virtually untapped market. Under the compact, California's biggest gambling tribes will be allowed to operate up to 2,000 slot machines each -- more than the number of slots at huge casinos such as the Luxor or Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

What's in it for ordinary citizens? Unlike the lottery deal that Alabama voters just rejected, Californians won't get college scholarships for their kids, or money for preschool programs. Indian gambling isn't even taxed. So what's in it for Californians? Not much.