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Rendell says tribes have little shot at casinos
Rendell predicted efforts by the Delaware Indian Tribe and Delaware Nation to open limited casinos in the state -- including one near the stadiums on the North Shore -- would fail. A spokesman for the tribes refuted the governor, saying a limited casino featuring high-stakes bingo, video bingo and poker could be operating in the state in 12 to 18 months.
At a news conference in Harrisburg, Rendell said he has yet to see any Indian tribe that comes close to meeting the legal threshold of proving an ancestral home in Pennsylvania. Under the National Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988, Indian tribes became eligible to open gambling operations on certain types of land, regardless of state laws that prohibit gambling. Some form of Indian casinos have opened in 28 states.
The North Shore holds one of several sites statewide, including several in the Philadelphia region, being reviewed by the Delaware Indian Tribe and the Delaware Nation, the tribes announced Tuesday. The two tribes are based in Oklahoma. Together, they represent about 12,000 members.
The type of casino sought by the tribes, called Class II, falls short of full casino gambling. Class II casino offerings include poker and other games where players bet against one another, not against the house. The house would get a piece of each pot.
Rendell has said he's opposed to adding Indian gambling to legislation that would legalize slot machines in Pennsylvania, and he reiterated that position yesterday.
Asked what he thinks about the chances of a group such as the Delaware Tribe gaining a Class II gambling permit, which requires federal approval but not state approval, Rendell said: "I don't think we're anywhere close to having that happen."
Rendell added that if a federal court rules that an Indian tribe has a legitimate claim, the state will have to recognize it.
"We think we have a valid claim," said Kevin Feeley, a spokesman for Bellevue Communications, which represents the tribes.
Feeley said the Delaware Tribe, but not the Delaware Nation, is considered a "restored and landless tribe" under federal law and doesn't need to prove a specific land claim before it could buy land and gain the right to offer gambling. The tribe needs only to show "historic ties to the area," he said.
The Delaware Tribe -- or Lenni Lenape -- originally inhabited Eastern Pennsylvania, all of New Jersey, northern Delaware and southeastern New York, according to the tribe's Web site. The name was given to Indians who lived in the vicinity of the Delaware River.
"The evidence shows the Delaware Indians populated all of the area that now constitutes the present-day Commonwealth of Pennsylvania," Feeley said.
Both tribes also are seeking land for full casino gambling, but that requires the state approving gambling legislation. Some analysts view the Class II approach as a way for the tribes to maneuver their way into state legislation to legalize slot machines at racetracks and at stand-alone parlors.
"The existence of Indian gaming in Pennsylvania is inevitable. It has nothing to do with whether the state approves the casino bill. However, the scope of Indian gaming is dependent upon it (passing)," said Charles Naselsky, an attorney for the Delaware Tribe.
Naselsky pointed out that Florida permits no casino gambling, yet two Indian tribes have been able to open more than six Class II casinos with federal approval.
In New York, the nearest state to Pennsylvania where Indian casinos have opened, one recent attempt by the Cayuga Indian Nation to open a Class II casino has become tangled in a legal battle bouncing between state and federal courts.
Syracuse lawyer Alan Peterman represents the village of Union Springs, whose residents are challenging the tribe's Class II permit because "they are concerned about the impact this gaming facility will have on the village." The tribe claims land it owns automatically becomes sovereign Indian territory and is not subject to local jurisdiction.
"It's an issue that hasn't been decided (here) before, so I'm not sure how we are going to come out," Peterman said.
Staff Writer Brad Bumsted contributed to this report.
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