Tribe buys ad to win public support

Erica Werner

Monday, April 14, 2003 | 11:23 a.m.

LOS ANGELES -- A Southern California Indian tribe launched a second statewide television commercial Sunday seeking to rally public support as talks with the state over slot machine limits and tribal revenue get under way.

The ad by the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, which operates a casino in San Bernardino County, shows community figures including a mayor, a fire chief and a coach talking about the benefits Indian gambling.

"With the troubled economy and cutbacks, cities like ours are lucky to have Indian gaming," says Mayor Ray Rucker of Highland, where the casino is located.

The ad is to run for two weeks, a tribal spokeswoman said Sunday. A San Manuel commercial that aired earlier in the month attacked "politicians in Sacramento" over a plan by Gov. Gray Davis to get $1.5 billion from tribes to help close the state's $34.6 billion budget deficit.

The new ad, titled "Benefits," focuses on positive statements about tribal gambling without attacks.

San Manuel is one of 61 California tribes that have compacts with the state allowing them to operate casinos. It is apparently the only tribe thus far to air television commercials in a bid for support as portions of the compacts come up for renegotiation.

Another tribe, the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, used a different political campaign-style tactic, asking casino patrons to write to Davis urging "a fair and favorable compact."

"The ad shows that they're trying to gain public support, and as we go into negotiations it's the end product that maters," Davis spokeswoman Amber Pasricha said Sunday.

Davis generated controversy going into the compact talks by proposing that tribes, which don't presently contribute to the state's general fund, agree to share $1.5 billion in revenue.

Indian gambling in California is estimated to generate $3 billion to $5 billion annually.

Tribes already pay into a fund for non-gambling tribes and another to mitigate the impacts of casinos. Many tribal leaders dismissed Davis' plan as unrealistic.

However some tribes have also said they want more slot machines than the 2,000 now allowed and would be willing to give more revenue in return.