BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION
Senator Isadore Hall, III
Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 2914 Hearing Date: 6/14/2016
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|Author: |Committee on Governmental Organization |
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|Version: |3/17/2016 Introduced |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |No |
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|Consultant:|Felipe Lopez |
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SUBJECT: Gaming: Indian Gaming Revenue Sharing Trust Fund
DIGEST: This bill clarifies provisions in current law
relating to the Indian Gaming Revenue Sharing Trust Fund (RSTF)
for the purpose of making distribution to eligible recipient
Indian tribes.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Provides, under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988, for
the negotiation and execution of tribal-state gaming compacts
for the purpose of authorizing certain types of gaming on
Indian lands within a state.
2)Authorizes, under the California Constitution, the Governor to
negotiate and conclude compacts, subject to ratification by
the Legislature.
3)Ratifies a number of tribal-state gaming compacts, and
amendments of tribal-state gaming compacts, and amendments of
tribal-state gaming compacts, between the State of California
and specified Indian tribes.
4)Establishes the RSTF within the State Treasury for the receipt
and deposit of moneys derived from gaming device license fees
that are received from tribes pursuant to the terms of
AB 2914 (Committee on Governmental Organization) Page 2 of ?
tribal-state gaming compacts for the purpose of making
distributions to noncompact tribes. Funds deposited into the
RSTF are distributed to certain federally recognized Indian
tribes that either do not operate casinos or operate casinos
with less than 350 slot machines. These tribes generally
receive $1.1 million annually.
5)Provides that moneys in the RSTF are available to the
California Gambling Control Commission (CGCC), upon
appropriation by the Legislature, for the purpose of making
those distributions in accordance with plans specified in
tribal-state gaming compacts.
6)Requires CGCC to, on or before the day of the May budget
revision for each fiscal year, determine the anticipated total
amount of shortfalls in payment likely to occur in in the RSTF
for the next fiscal year, and to provide to the committee in
the Senate and Assembly that consider the State Budget an
estimate of the amount needed to transfer from the Indian
Gaming Special Distribution Fund (SDF) to backfill the RSTF
for the next fiscal year.
7)Requires, at the end of each fiscal quarter, the CGCC's RSTF
report to include specified information, including, among
other things, the amount paid into the RSTF by each of the
tribes pursuant to the applicable sections of the tribal-state
gaming compact.
8)Requires the CGCC to determine the amount of money needed to
be transferred from the SDF to the RTSF to ensure that each
eligible recipient Indian tribe receives a specified amount of
the funds.
9)Defines "eligible recipient tribe" for the purposes to mean a
noncompact tribe, as specified. Those compacts define
"noncompact tribe" to mean a federally recognized tribe that
operates fewer than 350 gaming devices.
This bill:
1)Clarifies provisions in current law relating to the RTSF for
the purpose of making distributions to eligible recipient
Indian tribes, in accordance with distribution plans specified
in tribal-state gaming compacts.
AB 2914 (Committee on Governmental Organization) Page 3 of ?
2)Provides that tribes contributing to the RTSF on a net win or
gross revenue basis may be aggregated in the quarterly report,
as described.
3)Clarifies that an "eligible recipient Indian tribe" means a
concompact, nongaming, or limited-gaming tribe, as defined in
the tribal-state gaming compacts ratified and in effect, as
provided.
4)Deletes other related, obsolete provisions.
5)Makes technical and clarifying changes.
Background
Purpose of the bill. The bill represents the annual Assembly
Governmental Organization Committee bill that makes technical,
clarifying, conforming, and non-controversial changes to the
Government Code, relating to gaming. The amendments contained
in this bill have been put forth by the CGCC.
Indian Gaming Revenue Sharing Trust Fund. Pursuant to the
various tribal-state gaming compacts, tribes are requires to
make payments to the RSTF. The CGCC, as the trustee of the
RSTF, is required to make quarterly distributions from the RSTF
to eligible recipient Indian tribes that include noncompact
tribes or nongaming and limited-gaming Tribes. Each eligible
tribe receives $275,000 quarterly, for an annual total
distribution of $1.1 million per eligible tribe. Existing law
authorize moneys in the SDF to be used to make payments to
eligible recipient Indian tribes for shortfalls that occur in
the RSTF.
For Fiscal Year 2016-17, the CGCC estimates that 73 tribes will
be eligible for RSTF distributions of $1.1 million each, for
total estimated RSTF payments of $80.3 million. RSTF revenues
for FY 2016-17 are projected to total approximately $64.8
million.
Prior/Related Legislation
AB 1355 (Gray, 2015) specifies that the Tribal Nation Grant Fund
reflect a vision of facilitating the development of tribal
institutions and improving the quality of life of tribal people
throughout the state. (Pending in Senate Governmental
AB 2914 (Committee on Governmental Organization) Page 4 of ?
Organization Committee)
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.: No Local: No
SUPPORT:
None received
OPPOSITION:
None received