Deval Patrick: Revised deal reached with Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, planning casino in Taunton
By on March 14, 2013
By MICHAEL NORTON and MATT MURPHY
BOSTON — Gov. Deval Patrick and the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, which hopes to build a casino in Taunton, have reached an agreement in principle on a revised compact, Gov. Patrick said during a radio appearance Thursday.
An initial compact reached between the governor and the tribe was rejected by the federal government in October 2012 and state gaming industry regulators are considering whether to open the southeastern Massachusetts region up to commercial casino bidders.
Patrick said the revised agreement has been vetted with the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs and that he needs to brief legislative leaders about it – the compact needs legislative approval.
The governor, speaking early Thursday afternoon on his “Ask the Governor” segment on WGBH, said he may be able to sign the revised compact in the "next few days."
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission plans a meeting March 21 at Bristol Community College in Fall River to discuss the status of expanded gambling in southeastern Massachusetts, an area officials described as Region C.
Some southeastern Massachusetts lawmakers have expressed concern that casino development in the area will stall or lag behind other areas of the state if tribal gaming issues become hung up before the federal government.
Last October, the Bureau of Indian Affairs objected to the balance of concessions made by the state to justify a revenue-sharing agreement that would have sent 21.5 percent of net casino revenue back to Massachusetts. The government also ruled the administration overstepped its bounds in seeking to include hunting and fishing rights in the compact, and for trying to exert authority over issues such as regulation of suppliers and entertainment services.
http://www.masslive.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/03/deval_patrick_revised_deal_reached_mashpee_wampanoag_taunton_casino.html
BOSTON — Gov. Deval Patrick and the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, which hopes to build a casino in Taunton, have reached an agreement in principle on a revised compact, Gov. Patrick said during a radio appearance Thursday.
An initial compact reached between the governor and the tribe was rejected by the federal government in October 2012 and state gaming industry regulators are considering whether to open the southeastern Massachusetts region up to commercial casino bidders.
Patrick said the revised agreement has been vetted with the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs and that he needs to brief legislative leaders about it – the compact needs legislative approval.
The governor, speaking early Thursday afternoon on his “Ask the Governor” segment on WGBH, said he may be able to sign the revised compact in the "next few days."
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission plans a meeting March 21 at Bristol Community College in Fall River to discuss the status of expanded gambling in southeastern Massachusetts, an area officials described as Region C.
Some southeastern Massachusetts lawmakers have expressed concern that casino development in the area will stall or lag behind other areas of the state if tribal gaming issues become hung up before the federal government.
Last October, the Bureau of Indian Affairs objected to the balance of concessions made by the state to justify a revenue-sharing agreement that would have sent 21.5 percent of net casino revenue back to Massachusetts. The government also ruled the administration overstepped its bounds in seeking to include hunting and fishing rights in the compact, and for trying to exert authority over issues such as regulation of suppliers and entertainment services.
http://www.masslive.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/03/deval_patrick_revised_deal_reached_mashpee_wampanoag_taunton_casino.html
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