More than ‘a long shot’

By Kyle Johnson
Herald Staff Writer

A U.S. Senate bill that could affect a proposed Grand Forks casino moved closer to passage Wednesday, but a North Dakota official says there will be no casino here regardless of the bill's outcome.

"My position is that North Dakota law already prohibits an off-reservation casino anywhere in the state, so the outcome of this federal regulation really doesn't matter in this situation," said Wayne Stenehjem, state attorney general.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., was approved Wednesday by the Senate Indian Affairs Committee. If passed by Congress, it would make it much more difficult for tribes to open new casinos off their reservations.

The Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians has been seeking approval for an off-reservation casino to be built on land south of Grand Forks.

A 1997 state law, which was sponsored by Stenehjem when he served in the state Senate, prohibits off-reservation casinos in North Dakota.

Stenehjem said the law was created to make sure that casinos provided reservations with both funding and employment opportunities, something that an off-reservation casino could not do.

Unnecessary concern

Stenehjem said despite the "unwarranted optimism" of the casino's supporters, no off-reservation casinos will be built in the state.

"There is not going to be a casino in Grand Forks. There is no reason to be optimistic," he said.

And concern from citizens over the casino plan is unnecessary because the only way the project can succeed is if a change in state law is made, he said.

"Trying to get a change in the law is doomed to fail," he said.

If the proposal makes it to the state level, the governor would not be able to give his consent to the casino even if he wanted to because of the off-reservation law, Stenehjem said. U.S. Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton told Stenehjem that she agreed with this legal interpretation, he said.

Efforts continue

In spite of this reading of the law, organizers behind the casino proposal say they will continue their efforts.

"I think the law as it is today probably does prohibit an off-reservation casino, but there is uniqueness to Turtle Mountain and there is uniqueness to the state, and these things need to be looked at," said Bill Johnson, the tribe's point man on the project.

He said that the tribe is currently focusing on the federal process.

The Wednesday subcommittee approval of the bill did provide some encouraging news for the casino's odds of success.

McCain had sought to set the date on the bill's grandfather clause to March 29, but an amendment moved that date up to April 15. This means that tribes attempting to build an off-reservation casino would still be able to seek approval, as long as their applications are completed by this date.

"Basically, we would be grandfathered in because we have already started the application process, so we would not be subject to these new rules," said Ken Davis, the chairman of the Turtle Mountain tribe.

'Stumbling blocks'

Johnson said that the current laws on off-reservation gaming make the Grand Forks proposal difficult, but the planners will focus on these laws at a later time.

"We have to work through these stumbling blocks when we get to them," he said. "The project is a long-shot and a lot of work, but, if you look at all the facts, I think it would be pretty hard to say no to our idea."

Approval by the Secretary of the Interior and city officials would be required before the project would move to the state level.