More tribes sign gambling agreements with New Mexico

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) – One northern New Mexico tribe is digging in its heels, but others have signed new gambling agreements with the state in recent weeks to ensure they can operate their casinos for another two decades.

Gov. Susana Martinez’s office confirmed Wednesday that Taos, Isleta, Zuni and Ohkay Owingeh pueblos have signed on to a compact that was hammered out over three years of negotiations and approved by the Legislature during its last regular session.

The Navajo Nation, the Mescalero and Jicarilla Apache nations, and Acoma and Jemez pueblos already agreed to the provisions of the new compact, and final approval for those agreements was received in June from the U.S. Interior Department.

Now, talks are underway with Tesuque and Santa Clara pueblos, and other tribes have contacted the governor’s office about joining the new compact.

Jeremiah Ritchie, Martinez’s deputy chief of staff, said the compact is one that has been accepted universally, by one of the largest tribes to the smallest, despite opposition from Pojoaque Pueblo.

Ritchie took issue with accusations by Pojoaque that the state has been heavy-handed in its negotiations and has bullied the tribes.

“We did everything we could to make this compact as reasonable and as favorable to the tribes as we could while still protecting the state’s interests,” he said.

Pojoaque Gov. Joseph Talachy said in a statement late Tuesday that the compact was an illegal tax that would hurt the tribe, casino workers and the surrounding community.

“After hundreds of years of poverty, abuse and oppression, and the loss of land and water rights, we cannot continue to be taken advantage of by a state administration bent on wringing out more from our tribe,” Talachy said.

Complicating matters, Pojoaque’s gambling compact expired Tuesday. Under federal law, tribes must have compacts in place if they want to operate casinos.

U.S. Attorney Damon Martinez, no relation to the governor, said he would allow Pojoaque to continue operating its casinos pending the outcome of a case before the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver. In exchange, the tribe promised to abide by the provisions of the expired compact and set aside revenues that would have otherwise been paid to the state.

Pojoaque was required to share 8 percent of its net winnings under the expired agreement. According to filings with the state Gaming Control Board, the tribe reported net winnings of more than $60.7 million in 2014.

Its casinos cover tens of thousands of square feet and are filled with hundreds of slot machines and gambling tables.

Pojoaque walked away from compact talks in 2013, saying the state wasn’t negotiating in good faith.

Pojoaque sought a compact under which the gambling age would be lowered from 21 to 18, alcohol would be allowed on the casino floor and revenue sharing with the state would end.

The tribe also wanted permission for its casinos to cash payroll, Social Security, pension and government assistance checks and allow welfare recipients to use their electronic benefit cards at automated teller machines.

Negotiators for the Martinez administration have argued those provisions would fly in the face of attempts to create a more socially responsible system and one that would provide stability for New Mexico’s gambling market in the future.

The pueblo has applied a federal judge’s ruling that blocked efforts to have the Interior Department approve a compact rather than the state. It could be months before the appeals court rules.

Without a compact, Gov. Martinez said Wednesday that the gambling occurring at Pojoaque is illegal and leaves everyone from players to banks and vendors who deal with the pueblo without protections.