Tribal casinos, New Mexico settle out of court

Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2001 | 9:26 a.m.

SANTA FE -- Indian tribes and the state of New Mexico have settled the casino payments lawsuit out of court and new gambling agreements have been sent to the U.S. Department of Interior for approval.

Gov. Gary Johnson got the go-ahead from the attorney general and signed seven gambling compacts last week, officials said Tuesday. Four more are expected to be signed.

The settlements -- which require the tribes to pay the state about $91 million -- were reached two months ago but ran into a hitch in getting a federal judge's approval.

Settling the lawsuit out of court eliminated the need for the judge's signature.

The new compacts were endorsed by the Legislature in March, but Johnson could not sign them until the lawsuit had been settled.

The state sued a dozen tribes for refusing to pay the 16 percent of slot machine proceeds required under 1997 gambling agreements.

The new compacts set a maximum rate of 8 percent. They go into effect only if Interior Secretary Gale Norton affirmatively approves them.