Indian gambling negotiations continue as tribes ask Davis to rewrite plan

Brendan Riley

Thursday, Sept. 2, 1999 | 9:57 a.m.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Tribal leaders demanding revisions to California Gov. Gray Davis' plan to expand Indian gambling went away disappointed Wednesday.

The governor's spokesman said early in the day "there would certainly be very little room for wiggling" as the dealmaking continued behind closed doors. By the day's end, little had changed.

Richard Milanovich, tribal chairman of the Agua Caliente Band in Palm Springs, said there wasn't an "acceptable" response from the governor to concerns about his proposals for slot limits and for tribes with slots to share up to 25 percent of revenues with non-slot tribes.

The differences over slot limits and revenue sharing are two of the biggest roadblocks to a settlement.

"It didn't go all that well," Milanovich added. "I don't care to go into the details of it. It was just not accepted all that well."

What response the tribes did get was relayed by messengers. The governor's negotiators, present Tuesday, didn't show on Wednesday, and Milanovich said that was an obstacle in reaching a deal.

But he said about 300 people representing 64 of California's 107 tribes are sticking around and still hope for a compromise. "I think the governor would like to get this thing settled, for his own benefit as well as for the tribes'," he added.

Davis has offered to more than double the number of slot machines and give the Indians a monopoly on types of gambling that would remain illegal elsewhere in California. But he hasn't backed off from his insistence that they share up to 25 percent of their gross profits with other tribes, and allow union activity in the gambling halls.

"The governor was not interested in playing cat-and-mouse games with the tribes," Davis spokesman Michael Bustamante said Wednesday. "He was interested in putting his best proposal forward and that's exactly what he did."

The governor's stance prompted Milanovich to warn that the Indians will return to the voters with a proposed constitutional amendment clearing the way for their casinos - a move opposed by the administration.

Milanovich added there may be some division among the various tribes but "We all are working toward one goal. We all want an equitable compact."

The tribes' initiative is another version of Proposition 5, the statute change approved by voters last year but knocked down last week by the state Supreme Court as an unconstitutional attempt to get around the California Constitution's ban on casino-style gambling.

The Davis administration wants the Indians' latest ballot plan scrapped in favor of a legislative plan that also revises the constitution - but has the restrictions opposed by many of the tribes.

The legislative element of Davis' plan would have to be approved by lawmakers before they adjourn late next week. Voters would have final say on either plan in March.

If the negotiations fail, the tribes expect to submit signatures early next week qualifying their amendment for that same ballot.

While Milanovich said only part of the Davis plan is acceptable, Mark Macarro of the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians held out hope for an agreement before the Legislature adjourns.

"We're still talking," he said. "It's a long stretch before we get to any sleep here.

"There's a sense that all the possible ingredients for a deal are near at hand."

Under a 1988 federal law, Congress set up a framework for tribal-state regulation of gambling as a way to pump up economies on Indian reservations.

Former Gov. Pete Wilson negotiated compacts with 11 Indian tribes, and sought to limit the number of slot machines to just under 20,000. Proposition 5 had no curbs on the number of slot machines.