The quote of the day in this afternoon’s Senate Committee on Indian Affairs hearing on internet gambling belonged to Mohegan Tribe Chairman Bruce Bozsum, who asserted in front of a packed audience that Indian tribes can reach a brand new set of customers through the internet: “There are no boundaries. There’s no limit as to what they can do. I don’t think anyone is at a disadvantage. It’s an opportunity tribes should not miss. If commercial businesses do it, we’ll never be able to catch up to the pack.”A recurring topic in the two-hour hearing was whether Indian tribes should be able to regulate their own internet gaming sites. To that end, Bozsum contended, “We’ve proven what we can do with our brick-and-mortar casinos. We’ve done great so far at that. We take the integrity of our operation very seriously. We feel that tribes do have the technology, do have the experience to regulate themselves.” Bozsum’s brick-and-mortar casino is the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut.
Bozsum also gave lawmakers several suggestions for crafting internet gambling legislation in the House and Senate: “Expressly authorize Indian tribes to accept wagers from players not located on tribal lands. Protect existing tribal gaming compacts. Any legislation should honor the principle that governments don’t tax governments. Strictly enforce against unlicensed and unregulated sites. Introduce poker-only in phase one. It’s Mohegan’s belief that a poker-only market will allow the market to establish a regulatory scheme.”
Arguing against internet gambling on the same panel as Bozsum was Tulalip Tribe Vice Chairman Glen Gobin: “The Tulalip Tribe sees legalization of internet gambling as a direct threat to the development of Indian country… Today, Indian gaming accounts for $25.6 billion annually to the nation’s economy… The positive changes seen in Indian country as a result of Indian gaming cannot be understated.”
Gobin continued to express his opposition to the expansion of gambling online: “The legalization of internet gambling comes at a risk to tribal economies. The proponents that seek to legalize internet gambling say it will create $41 billion over the next ten years. However, let’s not forget that Indian gaming will provide $256 billion in the same period.”
Also serving as a witness in Thursday’s Senate Committee hearing was Poker Players Alliance (PPA) Chairman Alfonse D’Amato (pictured), a former three-term Senator from New York who received several hearty welcomes from lawmakers in attendance.D’Amato addressed Gobin’s concerns: “This will not have the kind of devastating impact that Gobin is legitimately concerned with. Right now, only 1% of all of the revenues at Indian casinos come from the poker tables. We have empirical evidence that since we had a TV craze for Texas Hold’em and since the internet has been used by offshore companies, the revenues in the card rooms have gone up. It has encouraged participation; it is not a revenue loser.”
One of the clear takeaways of the hearing was the widely held belief that Indian tribes should be involved in crafting any legislation about internet gaming. Coleman Indian Law principal Penny Coleman perhaps summed this sentiment up the best: “A fair and open discussion with tribal leaders is something that is absolutely necessary. If you have governments with 43% of the gaming revenue, their voice must count.”
Coleman continued, “When you’re looking at the tribal nations, you’re not talking about commercial gaming, you’re talking about government gaming. No one wants to disturb government gaming. There’s no reason that successful Indian nations can’t own and regulate internet gaming.”
Coleman noted that several tribes could be “run over” in a regulated scheme: “If there aren’t some major changes, there are many tribes that will be run over. There are Indian nations like Mohegan that are ready to go, but others only know it’s a possibility and they need to spend their time and their money supporting their government programs and not chasing something that may happen.” D’Amato suggested that several tribes work together to create a powerful online poker brand.
D’Amato was later asked what the PPA’s official stance on tribal involvement was. To that end, the PPA figurehead expounded, “Tribes have to be given a seat at the same time as anybody else. They should not surrender any of their sovereign rights. As it relates to taxation, it’s a thorny issue, but one that can be solved. The legislation we’re supporting is not gambling. It comes down to one thing – poker only.”
To wrap up the hearing, Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Chairman Daniel Akaka (D-HI, pictured) told the crowd, “This is a very complex issue. I feel we have just scratched the surface of the issue today. I know there are many tribes and affected stakeholders, and we need to hear from them too. That is why I intend to convene additional hearings on this issue.” You can view the webcast by visiting the official Senate Committee on Indian Affairs website.No follow-up hearing in the Senate Committee was announced. On Friday at 9:00am ET, the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade will examine internet gaming in its own hearing. The same subcommittee examined consumer protection issues two weeks ago in a meeting about the issue.
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