Gaming compact vote today

OLYMPIA – After days of 11th-hour negotiations between government officials and the Spokane Tribe of Indians, the state Gambling Commission will today vote whether to recommend a compact authorizing the Spokanes to have as many as 4,700 slot-style machines.

“Every hour until noon tomorrow, this is going to be a work in progress,” said Rep. Alex Wood, D-Spokane, one of four state lawmakers on the nine-member commission. He predicted a close vote.

But although some lawmakers – frustrated at the rapid rise of gambling – remain opposed, other critics seems to be more open to the compact now.

One early critic, Sen. Margarita Prentice, said Thursday that she’s been encouraged by several meetings with Spokane officials, including one on Wednesday.

“We took the time to really flesh out my major objections,” said Prentice, who will also have a vote today.

Even if the Gambling Commission votes against the compact, it’s unclear whether that would stop the deal. Gov. Chris Gregoire, who, under federal law, is ultimately whom the tribe is really negotiating with, said recently that although she hadn’t read all the details, she’s likely to sign the agreement.

Both state and tribal officials say they would like to put an end to two decades of arguing over the legality of the slot machines the tribe’s casinos have long been operating. The compact allows for joint regulation of the tribe’s gambling operations, including credentialing of workers, state inspections and periodic audits. The tribe would get the legal certainty it needs to attract major investors to expand its casino operations.

“This will be a new day for the Spokane Tribe and our neighbors,” tribal chairman Richard Sherwood said in December. He said it would benefit not only the tribe but also the surrounding region, providing jobs and attracting business.

Under the compact, gambling profits would be used to support tribal government services like health care, education and housing.

The agreement is similar to the one between the state and the nearby Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation. The Spokanes would be limited to five gambling facilities; the Colvilles are limited to six. The Spokanes could have up to 4,700 machines. The Colvilles can have up to 4,800, although they’re at present running 675.

The compact does not by itself authorize a proposed new off-reservation casino on land the Spokane Tribe owns near Airway Heights. Prentice – who initially blasted the Spokanes for including a clause requiring the governor to negotiate “in good faith” if such a casino is approved by the federal government – said she’s no longer worried about that provision.

“It’s not going to happen anyway,” she said of the Airway Heights casino. “It will never make it through the Department of the Interior.”

Wood said some of the Gambling Commission members are considering whether to delay the compact and simply wrap it into an all-tribes master agreement that is nearly finished. That would solve another of critics’ concerns: that me-too requests from other tribes will lead to a constant battle to one-up one another and a steady expansion in gambling statewide.

But given the timeline, Wood said, such a delay would require that the commission vote “no” today.

“A lot of the Spokane tribal members are really upset about that, because they don’t trust the process,” Wood said. “It’s understandable, after the past 20 years.”

But Prentice said she’s not sure that such a delay is worth it. Eventually, the Spokanes will be added to a statewide compact anyway, she said.

“I don’t think that that’s a hurdle I want to stop everything for now,” she said. “Feelings are very high. I’d like to have things calmer.”