Actions Speak Louder Than Words
A close look at the tribal record of Doug Burgum, Donald Trump's nominee to head the Department of Interior.
The Bulletin Board
VIEWS: How does DOI nominee Doug Burgum really feel about tribal gaming?
BEYOND the HEADLINE: What people get wrong about Donald Trump and casinos.
LEGAL and REGULATORY UPDATES: France gambling taxes could be ticking up; Texas casino lobbying reaches new height.
NEWS: The UK wants the gambling industry to pay the piper.
VIEWS: New Hampshire casino approval could spell doom for iCasino efforts.
AROUND the WATERCOOLER: Google and affiliates.
STRAY THOUGHTS: Welcome back, Captain Luck.
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The Lowdown on DOI Nominee Doug Burgum
Some reports suggest that current North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, President-Elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Interior, may present a roadblock to tribal gaming expansion efforts — specifically, online efforts.
Burgum’s history indicates the opposite is true.
Consider the compacts Burgum negotiated with the state’s five tribes in 2022 to:
Allow tribes to offer online Class III games, including sports betting, on their reservations — Burgum rejected a statewide mobile betting proposal.
Lower the legal age for gambling on reservations from 21 to 19 years old.
Allow tribes to accept credit and debit cards for any purpose, including account wagering and cashless gaming.
Limit the cost of state regulatory activity reimbursed by the tribes to no more than $10,000 per year for each tribe, subject to an annual inflation rate.
Yes, Burgum rejected a tribal proposal of statewide mobile Class III gaming, but this was in 2022, long before the West Flagler case was decided. In fact, the compacts were negotiated after the Seminole Tribe shut down its Hard Rock Sportsbook in December 2021 due to the legal proceedings, which was likely the reason for Burgum’s “skepticism about the legality” of the hub-and-spoke model.
In the press release, Burgum said [bold mine]:
“While we understand and appreciate the desire by some of the tribes to extend online gaming beyond their reservation boundaries, a clear legal path does not exist for the governor to grant such a broad expansion of gaming in the compact. We plan to work with the Legislature to bring all parties to the table and take a comprehensive look at gaming during the upcoming 2023 session, including sports betting, e-tabs and other gaming.”
Another indication that Burgum’s skepticism had everything to do with the situation in Florida and not some ingrained belief was the inclusion of language in the compacts, allowing tribes to offer statewide mobile iGaming if authorized by state and federal law.
Yes, Trump has a contentious history with tribes (a little bit of the backstory can be found here). Still, his history also indicates a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately attitude, and Native Americans appear to have swung toward Donald Trump in the 2024 election.
The bottom line is that I don’t see Trump focusing on tribal gaming policies nor anticipate Burgum, who is being installed at Interior for his energy policies, rewriting tribal gaming policy.
Beyond the Headline: Trump and Casinos
There is also a bit of speculation that because of his time as a casino owner, Trump has a certain nostalgia or at least some empathy for the plight of the casino industry.
I just don’t see it. Trump has been out of the casino industry (in any meaningful owner/operator capacity) since 2009 when he resigned from the board of Trump Entertainment days before the company’s third bankruptcy filing, which resulted in his ownership stake being reduced to about 10%.
Trump also fought to have his name removed from the properties in the 2010s, going so far as to sue to have the Trump name removed from the Trump Plaza and Trump Taj Mahal properties:
"I want it off both of them," Trump told the Associated Press. "I've been away from Atlantic City for many years. People think we operate [the company], and we don't. It's not us. It's not me."
And recall, it was during the first Trump administration that Sheldon Adelson finally got his Wire Act opinion rewrite, which led to a multi-year court battle that lingered into the Biden administration.
While I don’t think there will be another Wire-Act-opinion-level event (Adelson has passed), there is little reason to believe the second Trump term will have a soft spot for the gambling industry. As I said in the Burgum entry above, gambling policy isn’t where the administration’s focus will be in either direction.
Legal and Regulatory Updates: France Gambling Taxes; Texas Casino Lobbying Reaches New Height
Some gambling tax news from across the Atlantic: France’s Senate has voted to increase tax rates on soft drinks, tobacco, and gambling. Per Jake Pollard, “The tax hikes on wagering had been rejected by MPs, but the Senators approved the measures yesterday, with lottery GGR set to be taxed at 10%, all retail sports bets at 10% from 7%, and online bets at 15% from 10.5% currently. As Pollard explains, French operators already pay GGR taxes of around 55%; the new measure would push the rate close to 60%.
Money is flowing into Texas: Miriam Adelson and Las Vegas Sands have ramped up their already sizable contributions to Texas lawmakers and PACs, “Spreading around $13.7 million in political donations in the first 10 months of 2024,” per Dallas Morning News. That’s up from $3.3 million in the lead-up to the 2023 session. Of interest, “More than $8.2 million ended up with Republicans, including 14 six-figure donations to House Republicans and significant contributions to legislative leaders — $200,000 to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who presides over the Senate, and $1.02 million to House Speaker Dade Phelan.” Recall that the Texas Republican Party platform states, “We oppose any expansion of gambling, including legalized casino gambling,” and calls on GOP politicians to refuse donations from gambling organizations.
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UK Gambling Industry Facing £100M Levy To Counter Harms
Under a new proposal, UK gambling firms “will be forced to pay a £100m-a-year levy to fund research, education, and treatment of gambling harms,” per The Guardian. “Labour is understood to be poised to rubber-stamp the previous government’s proposal to do away with a voluntary system that allows industry operators to choose how much to donate to tackle damage caused by gambling and which organizations should receive the money.”
According to a spokesperson for the Department of Media, Culture and Sport, under the levy, licensed operators would pay between 0.1% and 1.1% of gross revenues depending on the sector they operate in.
Per Jake Pollard’s Gaming and Co newsletter:
50% will be directed to NHS England and appropriate bodies in Scotland and Wales
30% will go towards prevention
20% of funding will be directed to UK Research & Innovation to inform future policy and regulation
New Hampshire Online Casino Efforts Face New Challenge
As STTP previously noted, Cordish Companies is one of the biggest opponents of online casino legalization. And now, Cordish will be a significant hurdle for one of the best online casino contenders, New Hampshire, after a $200 million project that will bring a Live! Casino to New Hampshire was approved last week - STTP reported on the proposed casino earlier this year.
Per a press release, local developers and The Cordish Companies “received approval to develop a new $200+ million charitable gaming, entertainment, and dining destination at The Mall at Rockingham Park in Salem, NH.”
New Hampshire’s charity casinos already posed a challenge, as they were the voice of opposition to a 2023 online casino legalization bill that passed the Senate but stalled in the House (under some very eyebrow-raising circumstances).
With Cordish now officially in the mix, the possibility of getting the charity casino industry on the pro-legalization side is slim to none.
Around the Watercooler
Social media conversations, rumors, and gossip.
This was an interesting disclaimer at the top of a local newspaper’s article on gambling prospects in Texas and Oklahoma:
“If you make a purchase after clicking on links within this article, Lee Enterprises may earn affiliate commissions. The news and editorial departments had no role in the creation or display of this content.”
I am curious if it has anything to do with posts I’m seeing on X:
And some further reading from Dustin Gouker’s Closing Line entry on the topic:
“A couple of interesting reads on this front: 1. A good newsletter on SEO explaining what Google is doing, and why, and what it all means (the post is not just about gambling). 2. A LinkedIn post about gambling affiliate Finixio and how Techopedia.com has been impacted of late.”
Stray Thoughts
Speaking of X, the GOAT Twitter account has returned.
