Frustrated Tribes Try The Ballot Box Again
By Gary Fuller
editor@ocbtracker.com
ocbtracker.com
Starting tomorrow, a coalition of six Southern California tribes will be out getting signatures for a March 2000 ballot initiative. The Tribal
Gaming Initiative Constitutional Amendment and Statute takes aim at the political
and legal challenges to Proposition 5, approved by the voters last year.
Some of the legal issues are still tied up in the California State Supreme Court, and negotiations with the Governor's representative have
been stalled since the tribes submitted their proposed compact last June. Surveys conducted last week by the tribes showed even
stronger support for tribal gaming, and voters are fed up having their will at the ballot box thwarted by special interest groups after the
election.
Chairman Richard Milanovich of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians said that the tribes had to take this step to ensure that the
measure could be on the March 2000 ballot. Agua Caliente, Cabazon, Cahuilla, San Manuel, Santa Ynez and 29 Palms sponsor the
initiative. It also has the unanimous support of the California Nations Indian Gaming Association, a advocacy group of more than 50
tribes in California.
In order to qualify, the tribes must gather over 600,000 signatures. The tribes plan on doing this in three weeks, an unusually short
amount of time. Representatives said that this was due to the huge amount of support the people of California have for Indian gaming.
Next week, the tribes plan on mailing out more than 250,000 letters with individual petition forms to fill out and mail back.
Chairman Milanovich plans on holding onto the petitions when they are returned to wait and see how the State Supreme Court rules on
the constitutionality of Prop. 5. A decision is expected by the end of the
month. |
