The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe has reached a Class III gaming compact with Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick (D).

The tribal council voted 7-1 to accept the deal. It paves the way for the tribe to open a $500 million casino in Taunton.

"This is a great day for the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the City of Taunton, and all of Southeastern Massachusetts,” Chairman Cedric Cromwell said in a press release. “This is the first step in an economic development plan that will bring long-term prosperity to the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe while also bringing much needed job opportunities and revenue to the Commonwealth.”

The deal promises the tribe exclusivity in southeastern Massachusetts. In exchange, the tribe will share 21.5 percent of gross gaming revenues with the state.

The rate is lower than the 25 percent tax that non-commercial casinos will pay to the state. But it appears to be the highest rate by far of any Class III gaming compact in the U.S.

The compact in nearby Connecticut includes a 25 percent revenue sharing rate. But that applies to slot machine revenues, not gross revenues.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs recently rejected a compact in California with a double-digit sharing rate on gross revenues. In that case, the state did not offer a "meaningful concession," the agency determined.

The Wampanoag compact must be approved by the stage Legislature before it is sent to the BIA for review.

Get the Story:
Tribe, state reach casino deal (The Cape Cod Times 7/12)
State announces compact for tribal casino in Taunton (The Taunton Daily Gazette 7/12)
Gov. Patrick To Sign Mashpee Wampanoag Casino Deal (WBUR 7/12)
Tribe will pay less for casino (The New Bedford Standard-Times 7/12)
Wampanoags, Deval Patrick shake on 15-year casino compact (The Boston Herald 7/12)

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Opinion: Masphee Wampanoag Tribe's casino deal bad for region (7/11)