House committee approves casino proposals

By Patrick Condon

Associated Press Writer

      ST. PAUL (AP) - Proposals for two new casinos that would expand Minnesota's gambling industry to unprecedented levels passed their first major hurdle Friday evening, with a House committee approving both on split votes.

      The House Gaming Division approved both Gov. Tim Pawlenty's high-profile proposal for a state-tribal casino in the Twin Cities area, and a long-sought plan to open a casino at the Canterbury Park racetrack in Shakopee.

      While the committee votes were not recorded, Republicans spoke in favor of both projects while Democrats were opposed. Republicans endorsed Pawlenty's arguments of recent weeks that the deal would let three northern Minnesota tribes tap into the Twin Cities' lucrative market, and give government a piece of the state's growing gambling dollar.

      "I'm opposed to the expansion of gambling, but the fact is it's happening," said Rep. Andy Westerberg, R-Blaine, chairman of the committee and sponsor of Pawlenty's plan. "What we're trying to do here is bring some fairness into the distribution of gaming dollars in the state."

      Democrats failed in all their attempts to alter Pawlenty's plan, including a move to let residents of the city chosen as the casino's site a chance to vote on whether to allow it in their community.

      "We've finally come to this," said Rep. Tom Huntley, DFL-Duluth. "We are the seventh-richest state in America on a per-capita basis, and we've sunk to the level where we're going to fund K-12 and higher education with gambling money."

      Supporters and opponents of both casino proposals testified through the afternoon, with representatives of the northern tribes arguing the new casino would let them tap into the Twin Cities' lucrative gambling market.

      "It's an opportunity," said George Goggleye, chairman of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe. "It's a chance for us to make a difference in the lives of our people, to provide for them the things they won't have, the things that the state and federal governments are cutting."

      Profits from the $550 million casino would be split roughly in half, with the state and the three tribes - the Leech Lake and White Earth bands of Ojibwe, and the Red Lake Band of Chippewa - each estimated to earn in the range of $150 million a year.

      Southern Minnesota tribes that already own lucrative casinos said Pawlenty's proposal would decimate their own markets. They dismissed arguments from Pawlenty and the northern tribes that the statewide picture should be more equitable.

      "It's true gaming benefits some tribes more than others," said Doreen Hagen, president of the Prairie Island Tribal Community, which owns the Treasure Island Resort and Casino near Red Wing. "But gaming was never intended to be a universal resource for tribal governments. The truth is disparities between tribes have always existed."

      Proponents of the Canterbury Park racino billed it as a potential economic boon for the Shakopee area. It would also funnel an estimated $200 million a year into state coffers. Pawlenty has held open the possibility that the state-tribal casino and the racino could be bundled into one facility.

      The southern tribes also oppose the racino, saying it would cut even deeper into their markets.

      "It's hard for us not to judge this effort in the context of history," Hagen said. "It seems like every time our people get ahead, someone is there to knock us back."

      Both proposals, and especially Pawlenty's plan, face uphill battles in the Legislature, especially in the Senate, where opposition to expanded gambling runs deepest.

      "We move on to the next battle now," said Pawlenty's chief of staff, Dan McElroy, who personally shepherded the casino plan through Friday's hearing. "We have to keep convincing legislators that this is the best deal for the state."