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Florida’s state gaming pact with the Seminole Tribe has passed the approval period of 45 days the Department of the Interior, which oversees tribal gambling operations, announced the office of Governor Ron DeSantis on Friday.
Agreement will allow the Seminole tribe to add roulette and dice to its seven Florida casinos , including popular Hard Rock facilities in Hollywood and Tampa, reported Local News 10 .
Unless further action is taken in the courts, the tribe can also start with sports betting on 15 October and operate the horse tracks, jai-alai pediments and old dog tracks for a portion of the proceeds. Tribe-operated online sports betting would also be allowed.
The state is expected to receive an estimate of $ 20 $ 1 billion over the course of the 30 years.
“Final approval of this historic gaming pact is big business for the state Florida “, said DeSantis in a statement. ” This mutually beneficial agreement will grow our economy, expand tourism and recreation and provide billions in new revenue to benefit Floridians. ”
In the same press release distributed by DeSantis staff, Marcellus Osceola Jr., president of the Seminole Tribe of Florida, said: years, but also statewide sports betting and new casino games launching this fall that will mean more jobs for Floridians and more money invested in this state. ”
There are opponents to expanding gambling in Florida
Opponents have said that the mobile sports betting component of the pact is unconstitutional, and some South Florida leaders, including Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber, have raised concerns about the expansion of the game.
The compact was reached in April and was approved by the Florida Legislature in a special session on 19 May.
DeSantis quietly signed the new gambling bills passed by the Florida State Assembly on 25 May, promoting them for federal approval.
“This fight is starting. We are committed to ensuring that the will of residents is respected, a 72% of whom voted that Florida voters have the exclusive right to authorize casino gambling in our state, “said John Sowinski, president of No Casinos.org, last May, after learning of the ratification of the pact by the Florida House of Representatives.
The dissenting voices emphasize that, in this context, this pact violates Amendment 3, approved in a referendum in 2018, which grants only to voters “the exclusive right to decide whether to authorize casino gambling in Florida.”
In addition, the agreement allows online sports betting for the tribe and opens the door to “the largest” expansion of gambling in Florida history “turning every mobile phone into a slot machine”, according to No Casinos. org.
With information from EFE