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State, Seminoles Slow To Begin Talks On Gambling Compact

Tribune photo by KATHY MOORE

The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino quietly began offering blackjack, baccarat, and other card games on Nov. 13.

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By CATHERINE DOLINSKI | The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 5, 2008

TALLAHASSEE - Scheduling problems have slowed down talks between state officials and the Seminole Tribe about its gambling compact, a lawyer for the Seminoles says.

Attorney Barry Richard of Tallahassee, who represents the tribe, told the Orlando Sentinel last month that he expected formal discussions between his client, Gov. Charlie Crist and lawmakers to take place after Thanksgiving. On Thursday, Richard said that absences and scheduling conflicts for key players have made it impossible so far to arrange those meetings right away.

Richard said he expects to have meetings scheduled in the next week or so.

The Seminoles compact has remained controversial since the state Supreme Court ruled against it in July.

Crist forged the compact with the Seminoles on the state's behalf in late 2007. The compact allows the tribe to offer casino-style card games otherwise prohibited in the state, in exchange for a cut of the take. Lawmakers sued, saying that Crist exceeded his authority by not involving the Legislature.

The state Supreme Court took the lawmakers' side this summer, but tribal gaming is a federal issue that the state has no jurisdiction to patrol. Federal officials have not weighed in on the compact since the court's ruling, leaving the compact's status uncertain. The Seminoles continue to offer the games approved in the compact; some lawmakers have said they want to negotiate a new compact with better terms for the state.

Richard said he would not be surprised — or opposed — if lawmakers choose to take up the issue during a special session to address the state's shortfall of several billion dollars this fiscal year and next. Such a session has not yet been scheduled by state leaders, but is widely expected to take place sometime in January.

"That might be a good time to do it; the purpose is budgeting, and they need the money," he said. "It would also create certainty for the tribe."

Under the current compact, Florida would take in $1 billion from the tribe over the first five years and a half-billion dollars a year every year thereafter.

House Speaker Ray Sansom — no fan of gambling expansion — has not yet decided on a special session, much less what would be on the agenda, said spokeswoman Jill Chamberlin. She also said he has made no decision on how to handle the compact, essentially leaving all options on the table. But she downplayed any perceived urgency about taking it up right away.

"I think there's been a discussion — very informal discussion among many members — of the notion of taking up the compact and related issues at some point during the next six months," she said, adding, "the Legislature has a broader set of challenges" than just the gaming compact.

Reporter Catherine Dolinski can be reached at (850) 222-8382.

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