Seminole Tribe's lawyer suggests expansion of Indian gaming

Tuesday, November 8, 2011  

The Seminole Tribe is willing to share more revenues with the state of Florida in exchange for expanded gaming, attorney Barry Richard said.

The tribe already shares about $250 million a year under its Class III gaming compact. That's twice as much as non-Indian racinos pay at a tax rate of 35 percent of slot machine revenue.

The tribe's share will go away if lawmakers expand non-Indian gaming beyond the existing racinos. But Richard said the tribe is willing to come to the table again.

"If the state and the tribe were to reach an agreement to expand gaming beyond the present locations on the tribe's reservations, that agreement could provide for the state to continue to receive revenue from the compact as well as the additional revenue from expanded gaming," Richard told Sunshine State News.

The Miccosukee Tribe hasn't signed a Class III compact.

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