And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: From: Pat Morris <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> California gov, several tribes reach casino agreement By Brendan Riley, Associated Press, 09/10/99 04:00 SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) Gov. Gray Davis and several tribal leaders reached a deal late Thursday to keep Indian casinos open after they agreed to put the controversial issue of union rights for casino workers aside for another month. More than two dozen tribes voted to sign the deal. A major break came when Davis, labor-friendly legislators and tribal leaders agreed to keep a controversial provision on union organizing rights for casino workers separate from the compacts. Under the final plan, the labor proposal would have to be endorsed by each tribe by Oct. 13 or the compacts signed Thursday and early Friday would be nullified. That will give all sides more time to work out terms acceptable to unions, which want strong protections for casino employees, and for tribes, which worry including such a requirement in the compacts infringes on their sovereignty. The tribes were forced to the bargaining table when the state Supreme Court recently overturned a 1998 voter-approved measure allowing a major expansion of Indian casinos. The court ruled that the measure allowed Nevada-style gambling banned by the state constitution. Lawmakers also were nearing final action on a related proposal that would change the state constitution to get around the court ruling. The proposal would give tribes a monopoly on slots and Nevada-style blackjack games. ''That measure, together with the compacts that we are agreeing to tonight, will finally allow California Indian tribes to achieve the self-reliance that we have long been seeking and will protect the thousands of people employed by tribal gaming operations throughout the state,'' the tribal governments said in a written statement released early today. The deal also changes the way slot machines will be allocated. Under the plan, the tribes with no slots would have the first opportunity to draw from a pool of machines available to all the tribes. It's estimated the number of slots would more than double to at least 43,000. http://www.boston.com/dailynews/253/nation/California_gov_several_tribes_:.shtml http://wolfseeker.com http://www.InsideTheWeb.com/mbs.cgi/mb629759 http://www.sunlink.net/~wlfskr
