August 10, 2006

California To get new Slot Machines, and A New Casino!

It looks like "AAAhnold" is hard at work trying to generate more funds for the state of California. WIth this deal, he is allowing some Cahuilla Indians to make a bunch of new slot machines, as well as open a new casino. And at 15%, that aint half bad.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and one of the state's richest Indian tribes are expected to announce a deal Tuesday that would send nearly $2 billion in casino earnings over the next two decades to the state's general fund, much the way taxes are collected on other industries.

In exchange for giving up a previous deal that did not require the tribe to feed California's coffers, the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians would be allowed to increase from 2,000 to 5,000 the number of slot machines it operates, as well as open a third Palm Springs-area casino.

The tribe would pay the state 15 percent of its net earnings from the new machines and an increased share of revenue from its existing slots, said the Agua Caliente's press secretary, Nancy Conrad.

"This is a deal that the tribe is very happy with, that all sides will be very happy with," she said. "Look at how much is paid out in business tax by others — it's about 8.3 percent. This is well above that. The tribe is paying more than its fair share."

Read the whole story at Gambling Planet