See, back in 2010 when the Seminoles and the state reached a $1 billion compact, a portion of that agreement included guidelines for keeping some tribe financial info confidential. Public records requests regarding the Seminoles have routinely included redactions.
But the fact is, we pretty much know how the tribe is doing. I figured it out myself back in 2014, crisscrossing state and local tax documents. The state said the Seminoles made about $2.1 billion. Local government received pro-rated payments based on the profitability of the seven casinos. I had the Tampa casino making about $900 million and the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood about $528 million. Seminole CEO James Allen’s testimony didn’t even break it down by
So the Seminoles’ request probably was an overreaction. Or, more likely, they were just playing hardball. Florida’s Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering (PMW) has had problems since Gov. Rick Scott’s former chief of staff pushed out PMW Director Milt Champion. Since then, the PMW has allowed barrel racing and been forced by legislators to flip-flop on allowing banked card games at racetrack casinos. So this whole Politico thing strikes me as a mid- to low-level foul up, with neither a great story nor great harm to the Seminoles in the cards.
The Politico story puts the tribe’s revenues at $2.4 billion, with $2.2 billion of that from gambling. That’s in line with what the state’s Revenue Estimating Conference has said. State economists gather periodically and discuss the gambling industry because they’re trying to project how much tax money they’ll be receiving. That way, the state can budget better.
Politico’s argument was that they shouldn’t be punished because they obtained the information lawfully. The article also stated that Allen, in his deposition, talked about Donald Trump.
“The Trump organization was
The tribe has continued to offer blackjack and other table games since that portion of their agreement with the state expired July 31. The state is arguing the tribe should stop offering the games; the tribe argues the state did not negotiate in good faith, as required by federal law.
The tribe is also asking that racetrack casinos not be allowed to offer versions of Three Card Poker, Pai Gow, or Casino War. The state first allowed the games, then retracted; 15 racetrack casinos in Florida are ignoring the retraction, arguing that they went to the expense to set the games up in their poker rooms.
Get daily gambling news at SouthFloridaGambling.com. Follow Twitter @NickSortal.
