Indian Gaming > State casino only open to tribes with unmet needs

March 15, 2005

State casino only open to tribes with unmet needs

A proposed state-tribal casino will only be open to tribes who can demonstrate they have unmet housing, health care and other basic needs, The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Three tribes have agreed to partner with the casino. The Leech Lake, White Earth and Red Lake bands of Ojibwe suffer from high poverty and unemployment.

Other tribes in the state oppose the partnership but they won't be able to join the deal even if they wanted to. Lawmakers added the means requirement to the bill in order to justify creating the state-tribal casino.

Stanley Crooks, chairman of Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, questioned whether means testing will be applied to non-Indian groups that want to open casinos in the state.

Get the Story:
Casino bill adds means testing (The Minneapolis Star Tribune 3/15)
Username: indianz, Password: indianzcom