Tribes to pay casino money to Florida

Florida’s Governor has announced that the Seminole Tribe will continue to pay casino money to the state in exchange for exclusive rights.

US.- Florida will continue to receive over US$300 million a year from the Seminole Tribe’s casinos after the government and the tribe reached a deal to honour a 2010 gambling agreement. Governor Rick Scott revealed that the tribe will continue the payments in order to retain the exclusive rights to offer games such as blackjack at its venues and the monopoly over slot machines.

“Today, I am proud to announce that the state of Florida has reached an agreement with the Seminole Tribe which ensures the tribe’s current commitment remains intact,” Scott said in a statement. “Since I took office, the Seminole compact [the 2010 agreement] has generated more than US$1.75 billion which has helped our state make historic investments in things like Florida’s education and environment.”

The deal will guarantee the continued flow of the tribe’s money to the state budget and is considered to be a potential attempt by lawmakers to expand gambling in Florida. However, there has been some opposition to the proposal, which is why there might be a special session in store in the near future.

“It certainly is a positive step. However, we are continuing discussions regarding a special session,” Sen. Bill Galvano said.