Arizona gambling vote delayed again

Scott Thomsen

Friday, May 3, 2002 | 9:51 a.m.

PHOENIX -- The Senate has delayed until Monday its final vote on an agreement between Gov. Jane Hull and 17 Indian tribes to continue casino operations.

Senators were scheduled to vote on the bill Thursday, but Sen. Lori Daniels, R-Chandler, requested a delay, which is allowed by the Senate's operational policies.

"It's another delay in the process that's been delayed too long," Hull's gambling adviser Mike Bielecki said. "It doesn't surprise me. They've used almost every artifice and procedure to delay this."

The Legislature authorized the governor to negotiate a tribal gambling agreement and the Legislature should now vote on it, he said.

Daniels said she wants time to discuss possible amendments that might be offered later in the House regarding public disclosure of casino profits.

"I just want to think about it and study it over the weekend," she said.

The only person who can ask for another delay is its sponsor, Sen. Herb Guenther, D-Tacna, who wants a vote.

The agreement among Hull and the tribes would put more slot machines into play and allow Las Vegas-style blackjack. The state would have regulatory authority over casino operations and receive up to 8 percent of the profits. The deal would last for up to 29 years.

Opponents have criticized the length of the agreement, access to automated teller machines at casinos and the tribes' ability to withhold from the public how much they make from gambling. They have tried to slow down action on the bill, which has led the tribes to start work on an initiative as a backup plan in case the bill does not win approval.

Supporters have enough votes to pass the bill out of the Senate. It remains unclear whether they have votes from two-thirds of the membership in the Senate and House that would be necessary to protect it from referral to the November ballot and put it into law immediately upon the governor's signature.

"The governor's proposal clearly has majority support," Bielecki said. "The question is does it have two-thirds support."

Also on Thursday, U.S. District Judge Robert C. Broomfield issued a ruling in a lawsuit by American Greyhound Racing against Hull regarding the gambling compact negotiations.

In it, Broomfield made it clear the Legislature has the ability to fix problems with how gambling agreements are approved and the legal standing for Indian gambling in Arizona.

"The court is aware of the legislative action that is taking place with regard to these issues, and does not accept plaintiffs' argument that the political process cannot in any way cure the state constitutional deficiencies found in current law," Broomfield wrote.

Hull praised the judge's decision.

"The judge has again rejected the racetracks' claims that Indian gaming is unconstitutional," she said. "I believe that a strong majority of the members in the Senate and the House understand that it is our responsibility to act upon this matter now, and not let it simply default to the ballot. Unfortunately, a minority of members have chosen to delay the process as long as they can."

With the biggest decision regarding gambling put on hold until Monday, senators did pass two related bills and sent them to the House for consideration:

SB1002 would make cheating while gambling a crime and make it easier for authorities to enforce. It passed on a 28-0 vote. Currently, authorities use a federal law banning theft from a tribe to prosecute cheaters.

SB1003 would define the scope of gambling allowed under tribal-state compacts and require the Legislature to ratify a compact proposed by the governor. It is a more general outline for how a compact is approved that Sen. Pete Rios, D-Hayden, is offering as an alternative should the agreement among Hull and the tribes fail. It passed on a 19-9 vote.