STOP PREDATORY GAMBLING NEW MEXICO POST

NAVAJO GAMBLING COMPACT COULD PREVENT NM INTERNET GAMBLING

Although I would rather that there were no new Navajo gambling compacts, and that their tribal casinos would close, it’s interesting that they have inserted a provision that would prohibit the state from legalizing Internet gambling.  If the state were to approve the compacts, Internet gambling would be criminal as long as the compacts were in effect.  That would be state law, regardless of any mention in other tribal compacts.

We have been fighting Internet gambling on the national level, and fought and defeated a bill in 2012 by Harry Reid and John Kyl that would have legalized Internet poker.  We are sure that the gambling lobbyists will push again this year, but a state law would probably keep it out of New Mexico.

The current Navajo compacts expire in 2015, and they could simply adopt the exact compacts that the rest of the tribes have with the state, and probably avoid any negotiation.  But they have done some minor tinkering with the existing compacts, so they need to have the governor and the legislature pass them. This is one tinkering that I like.

The Albuquerque Journal ran an editorial on this issue that can be read by clicking here.