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Expanded gambling revenue may go to education

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The Associated Press

Published: May 5, 2009

Updated: 05/05/2009 09:03 pm

TALLAHASSEE - The state's share of expanded gambling at Seminole Indian casinos should go to education, House and Senate negotiators agreed today as they resumed talks that had been put on hold pending the settlement of a new state budget.

Negotiators have yet to decide how much gaming should expand, but linking it to education is expected to help overcome a reluctance by many lawmakers to approve more gambling.

"That's brilliant," Gov. Charlie Crist said after he met privately with the Senate's chief gaming negotiator, Ways and Means Chairman JD Alexander, R-Lake Wales.

"If we can have the lion's share go to education, I think that makes a very good statement about what our intent is," Crist said. "Yeah, who doesn't like education?"

Crist last year negotiated a gaming compact with the Seminoles, but it was blocked by the Florida Supreme Court, which ruled any deal must be approved by the Legislature.

Alexander met for the first time since last week with his House counterpart, Rep. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton.

They will continue talking Wednesday after they did not settle the overriding issue of what kind of gaming should be allowed and where.

Crist and Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp later dropped in on the negotiations.

"Some progress is better than no progress," Crist said.

The House initially didn't want to allow any banked card games, and Galvano did not move off an offer he made last week to let the Seminoles have blackjack tables at the tribe's three Broward County casinos but not at four other facilities in Tampa, Immokalee, Brighton and Coconut Creek.

The Senate wants to allow blackjack and other banked card games at the Broward and Tampa casinos but only blackjack at the other three facilities. Alexander offered to limit video lottery machines to casinos in Broward and Miami-Dade counties.

Alexander and Galvano, though, quickly agreed gaming money should go into the state's Education Enhancement Trust Fund that spends about $1.5 billion annually.

Now supported mostly by lottery proceeds, the biggest part of the trust fund — about $400 million every year — goes to Bright Futures college and university scholarships based on students' grades and entrance test scores.

Smaller portions go to pay off school construction bonds, need-based scholarships and other education spending at all levels.

Lawmakers have not put any gaming compact money in the $66.5 billion budget that's up for a final vote in both chambers Friday. That's because they haven't yet agreed on the issue and it's too late to change the spending bill.

Because of that uncertainty, any first-year proceeds likely will be held in reserve and used "principally" for education in case the state runs into more revenue shortfalls that have caused massive spending cuts over the past two years, Alexander said.

Galvano and Alexander also agreed Crist should negotiate with the Seminoles to include sales and possibly other taxes that could be collected from non-tribe members who stay in their hotels and gamble in their casinos. The state cannot levy taxes on tribal lands without the Seminoles' approval.

"Several members were concerned that sales taxes were being paid and the payers believed they were actually paying Florida sales tax and funds were being collected but not remitted," Galvano said.

Yet, casino and hotel customers likely use state and local government services including treatment for gambling addiction, Alexander said.

"If somebody has a heart attack on the floor of a casino, its going to be, quite frankly, probably a local ambulance that comes, picks him up, takes him to a local hospital," Alexander said. "If they lost all their money and can't pay their bill, we're going to pay the bill."

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