Panel kills bill banning video gambling at tribal casinos

BOISE (AP) — An Idaho House panel has killed a bill aimed at banning lucrative video gambling at tribal casinos in Idaho.

The House State Affairs Committee on Thursday voted 8-7 to kill the bill concerning what gambling is allowed on Indian reservations.

Tribal members had warned the proposed law would violate contracts between the tribes, state and federal government.

“It’s discouraging to see a bill like this come up, but we are pleased that the committee members recognized the confusion that would be created by this bill and saw fit to keep it from moving any further,” said Coeur d’Alene Tribal Chairman Chief Allan in a statement.

Republican Rep. Tom Loertscher of Iona backed the legislation that would have removed a key section of a 2002 law detailing that video machines could not be defined as illegal slot machines.

He contended the bill wasn’t about banning tribal gambling, and if the tribes’ gambling machines are in compliance the bill would have no effect.

“If not, then the machines will have to be brought into compliance,” he said. “Even in that circumstance, gaming will continue with machines that are found to be in compliance with the Constitution.”

Republican Rep. Joe Palmer, of Meridian, voted to kill the bill, though noted he’s against gambling.

“If I thought this piece of legislation would in any way help us to remove those machines, I would be in support of it,” he said. “However, I do not think that that is what this piece of legislation will accomplish. I believe it will put us into a lawsuit that we will not win.”

“I think the state of Idaho has recognized that the tribes are a good partner,” he said, “and we have entered into a contractual obligation with a partner.”

Tyrel Stevenson, legislative director for the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, also said the Tribe is happy with the outcome. It is always willing to sit down and discuss any differences or explain how things are done, should the issue come up again in the future.

“This doesn’t necessarily have to come up in a House committee vote,” Stevenson said.

He said one North Idaho lawmaker’s comments during the committee hearings were particularly bothersome to the Tribe.

“It was very upsetting to hear Rep. (Vito) Barbieri refer to the tribe’s ‘fictional sovereignty,’” Stevenson said. “He used that phrase a couple of times. There’s nothing fictional about it.”

Opponents of the bill argued it went against federally-approved agreements on what types of gambling can take place on a reservation because those agreements were built around certain laws. They said changing the laws before the compacts are renegotiated or replaced with the state could spark multiple lawsuits.

Press reporter Steve Cameron contributed to this story.