Two Tribes Reach Agreement to Operate California Casinos

The network of California casinos is now set to expand.

Governor Gavin Newsome recently signed three gaming compacts that will allow two additional tribes to operate their own California casinos. With 66 other tribes already licensed to run casino gaming, The Timbisha Shoshone Tribe and the Elem Indian Colony of Pomo Indians of the Sulphur Bank Rancheria will bring the total to 68 after their agreement with The Golden State.

Though this compact was just finalized, interesting details are already beginning to trickle out. What’s more, many see this as a step toward the eventual legalization of sports betting in California. 

Is that speculation valid? What does this compact do for the casino industry in The Golden State? Are there any other important details we need to know? Let’s break it all down.

Tribes will be Licensed to Operate Class III California Casinos

As part of this agreement, the two tribes will be approved to operate California casinos that offer Class III gaming options. Here’s PlayCA’s Cheryl Coward with the full scoop:

“Both newly signed compacts enable the tribes to operate Class III gaming facilities. The state defines Class III games as ‘slot machines, electronic games of chance, and many banked card games like blackjack.’ Both tribes can also offer Class II games, which include bingo, lotto, and ‘non-banked’ card games like poker. In Class II games, players compete against each other, not against the house. The compacts are for 25 years and can be extended, amended, or renegotiated. 

The Timbisha Shoshone compact allows the tribe to have 1,200 gaming devices and up to three Class III gaming facilities. The Elem Indian Colony compact allows for 349 gaming devices and up to two Class III gaming facilities. The tribe had a previous compact with the state ratified in 1999. However, the new agreement outlines devastating environmental and natural disaster challenges that the tribe faced in previous years which ‘made economic development on the Tribe’s rancheria difficult.”

Overally, this agreement could result in the opening of five additional California casinos. According to 500Nations.com, the state already has 76 casinos and five mini-casinos. In a few years’ time, though, The Golden State could see its full-service casino total climb above. 

What Does This Gaming Compact Say About the Future of Gambling in California?

The ripple effects of this agreement may not change much about the California casino market. As the most populated state in the USA, the region definitely has the demand to support additional gaming facilities.

Certain terms of this compact are more intriguing for what they could imply. Notably, as Coward mentioned, the agreement can be “extended, amended or renegotiated.” More specifically, the ability to amend the compact feels telltale. 

From our vantage point, this contract is built to withstand a shifting landscape. Online casinos in the United States are more popular than ever. However, it’s not yet legal to operate them in California. Practically speaking, then, The Golden State cannot license any of their tribes to run California online casinos. If and when the laws change, though, it doesn’t seem like the Timbisha Shoshone or Elem Indian Colony will have to jump through many hoops to capitalize on it. 

To that end, it’ll be interesting to see whether other tribes have similar or identical language in their gaming compacts. After all, online betting in California has remained a hot-button issue for years.

And speaking of that…

Does This Gaming Compact Say Anything About the Outlook of California Sports Betting?

In a vacuum, licensing additional California casinos doesn’t have a direct impact on the sports betting debate. At the same time, it does highlight the state’s willingness to expand the gambling industry. And that is related to California sports betting.

This agreement also reinforces the influence of tribes in the state. California has over 100 that they recognize. Nearly 70 of them now have the ability to operate California casinos. When it comes time to debate the future of sports betting, you better believe their opinions of how it gets legalized will matter.

Heck, we’ve already seen this influence in practice. Back in 2022, the state’s tribes were generally against allowing online sportsbooks in the United States to enter the market. Their stance was adopted by many state legislators. That, in turn, no doubt played a role in the California online sports betting bill getting shot down in 2022. (Though, to be fair, a tribal-only initiative also failed to gain voter approval.)

It should be the same story next time around. While tribes opted against pushing for sports betting in 2025, the interest is supposed to resurface during 2025 legislative meetings. In fact, the bones of a proposal already may be in place. Tribal officials are hoping in-person California sports betting gets legalized by 2026, with the approval of online betting sites coming around 2028.

Online operators may inevitably push back against that timeline. Or they could just accept it. At this point, we would bet on the latter. California tribes hold so much power. If they want time to establish their own market share leveraging their California casinos, they will have the support of many state officials. And if they don’t also receive it from online operators, they have the way to derail sports betting efforts entirely.

Basically, this gaming compact should be seen as a reinforcement of how important tribal California casinos continue to be.

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