Casino news source: The Record - http://www.recordonline.com
Casino approval would rest with Secretary of Interior
By Victor Whitman
February 16, 2007
Monticello — The final decision on a Monticello casino rests with one man. And that man, Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne, is not saying anything.
But the signs out of Washington are not pointing to a quick, easy approval for the St. Regis Mohawk casino at Monticello Gaming and Raceway.
While governor of Idaho, Kempthorne opposed off-reservation casinos, and now he faces a glut of applications from tribes around the country. "In the conversation I had with him, he seemed to be in a frame of cooperation, but he didn't give me a definite answer one way or other," said Rep. Maurice Hinchey, D-Hurley, who talked in January with Kempthorne about the Mohawk project.
Gov. Eliot Spitzer must OK the casino first. Once he does, Kempthorne must then agree to take just under 30 acres at the raceway into trust. Kempthorne's Associate Deputy Secretary James E. Cason would do the bulk of the review.
"If we get the concurrence from the governor, we would start the review immediately," said Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary George Skibine, who has been heading up the review in the Bureau of Indian Affairs. "It should not take (Skibine's department) more than two or three months." Cason and Kempthorne, however, can take as long as they want to decide, and Skibine wouldn't speculate on how long they would take.
In November, the feds signed off on the environmental piece. But in his letter to then-Gov. George Pataki, Cason said final approval is not guaranteed, noting that the casino would be 450 miles from the tribe's reservation and that the department was worried about the proliferation of off-reservation casinos. Sources in government say Kempthorne is behind the tough talk.
"I think Secretary Kempthorne is very appropriately and legitimately concerned about the proliferation of applications for off-reservation casinos," Hinchey said. "I think he is right about that. If he had to approve all these applications, there would be a proliferation, particularly in California, but also in New York. I understand what his apprehension is."
But Hinchey also said Kempthorne can be convinced. "In this particular case, there are acceptable reasons for approving this particular application."
The tribe says it's also optimistic.
"There will be a lot of political pressure from way up high," St. Regis Mohawk spokeswoman Leslie Logan said. "You've got (Sen. Chuck) Schumer, Hinchey, a whole list of people behind this project. We are very confident, absolutely."
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