Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) finds himself in just a bit of a pickle. He’s refused to negotiate with the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, who want to extend their burgeoning empire of Class 
II casinos from Alabama into the state’s Panhandle region. But, according to a Department of Justice edict, Native American tribes can grow and sell marijuana. So the Poarch Bank has offered him an ultimatum: give us casinos or we’ll sell pot to your kids. (That’s the gist of it.) Does tribal-averse, former HMO exec Scott want to turn the Sunshine State into a giant cloud of cannabis? Or is he willing to grit his teeth and hammer out another gaming compact? Considering that he’s in no hurry to cut a new deal with the Seminole Tribe, he may well tell the Poarch Band to grow and be damned.
The tribe’s priority is gaming, but the threat of marijuana cultivation is a powerful way of drawing attention to their demands. “We have 642 tribal members living throughout the state of Florida. We are asking Gov. Scott to acknowledge we are a federally recognized tribe,” said tribal Chairwoman Stephanie Bryan. The tribe only has an acre on which to develop (or cultivate), near the Alabama border, but that may be sufficient. Right now it’s the site of a warehouse.
Scott’s office maintains that the tribe hasn’t enough federal recognition to justify any negotiations. What the Poarch Band is trying to put on the table is the so-called “I-10 consolidation” plan. Under it, the tribe would open three Class II parlors, including one in Jacksonville, offering electronic bingo, which it estimates would generate $200,000 million a year. That’s a pretty aggressive projection. Anyway, Scott seems to have made sticking it to the Seminoles (in a throwback to the “Call me bwana” days of the Jeb Bush administration) his priority. Unless the Poarch Band begins growing weed in earnest, it seems unlikely to draw his attention.
* Internet poker is gathering critical mass in the California Legislature, where no fewer than four bills (two of them identical) address the issue. With all due respect to those states where ‘Net betting is already legal, California is the Holy Grail that operators seek. But the whole thing could founder on a large obstacle called PokerStars. It’s having trouble shaking the “bad actor” label it acquired for continuing to operate in the U.S. after the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (a sneaky, underhanded piece of legislation — but I digress). Some tribes, such as the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, are willing to let bygones be bygones.
However, neither the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians and the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians is willing to forgive and forget. Their opposition is considered powerful enough to kill any online-wagering bill that absolves PokerStars. San Manuel’s CEO of online business, Matthew Cullen, counters that the conduct of individual operators is a matter for regulators, not lawmakers. He also contends that poker, being a game of skill, has never been illegal under UIGEA.
A secondary issue at the moment concerns horse tracks. They’d like to be part of the Internet action, but at least one bill before the Assembly restricts it to card rooms and tribal casinos. State Sen. Isadore Hall (D) and Assemblyman Adam Gray (D) seem to agree with Cullen when they say, “Any iPoker proposal must put California taxpayers first and must ensure a safe and responsible entertainment option for adults. If done correctly, this legislation could serve as a national model for other states to follow. We think we can do it and we’re all in to move California iPoker forward this legislative session.”
In addition to Poker Stars, three major card clubs and several tribal casinos are lining up behind Hall and Gray. But it remains unclear what it’s going to take to persuade the Luiseno and Cahuilla tribes that it’s in their interest to give PokerStars a do-over. And, until that happens, don’t expect any game-changing news out of the Golden State.
