The Senate Indian Affairs Committee on Thursday approved a bill to restrict the use of a gaming site in California.

S.1347 bars the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians from turning a Class II facility into a Class III facility without state and federal approval. It also bars the tribe from expanding the "exterior physical measurements" of the San Pablo Casino.

The casino is located on 9 acres that was taken into trust by an act of Congress. The law, which was passed in the final days of the Clinton administration, allowed the tribe to bypass the lengthy land-into-trust process for gaming sites.

S.1347 maintains the trust land status of the site but requires any future changes to be treated as a Section 20 application under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. The bill doesn't say whether or not the tribe can claim any of the exceptions.

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Feinstein bill on casino clears key committee (The Contra Costa Times 9/28)