Plans for Monroe County casino stalls gaming compact vote

Jun. 17—While the Seneca Nation of Indians has announced it has an "agreement in principle" with New York state for a new 20-year gaming compact, recently revealed plans for a new casino in Monroe County have stalled the proposal.

On Twitter Friday, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie announced there would not be a vote to give Gov. Kathy Hochul authorization to enter into a new compact agreement with the Seneca Nation.

"I believe the Seneca Nation deserves a fair deal. However, the sentiment of the Assembly's Monroe County delegation — coupled with the potential loss of union jobs — is concerning, and we cannot move forward with a vote on the compact at this time."

Late Friday night, Seneca Nation President Rickey Armstrong Sr. issued a statement, calling the Assembly's lack of action at the eleventh hour "despicable."

"The Seneca Nation announced an agreement with New York State that we believe represents a fair deal for everyone," Armstrong's statement read. "The Governor's negotiating team spent 11 months negotiating the terms of this agreement. The parties arrived at an agreement that we believed was allowable under the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, while still benefiting the State and, particularly, local communities. The Nation did so with terms that would still provide the Seneca Nation with fair value for what, even under new terms, would remain one of the highest exclusivity share payments in the country. The State Senate approved the deal overwhelmingly, recognizing the mutual benefits the agreement would provide to the State and the Nation."

Armstrong also blamed Hochul and state lawmakers for not alerting Rochester officials to the casino plans.

"The blame for keeping Rochester officials out of the loop lays directly at the feet of the Executive. The Executive and the Nation agreed not to negotiate through the press or in public, but contrary to media coverage, the parties never entered into a Non-Disclosure Agreement."

Assemblymember Harry Bronson (D, Dist. 138) told WROC News 8 in Rochester that despite a Thursday meeting between state assmblymembers and the Seneca Nation there are still a lot of unknowns with the deal.

He did say the possible casino location is the "Rochester market" and it could mean western Monroe County, not the city proper. But Bronson said there is no certainty to that.

When news of the Monroe County casino broke, officials at Batavia Downs were among those quick to attack the proposal.

"The latest scheme by the Senecas and some New York state government officials to place a stealth casino in the Rochester area should be a non-starter for residents, community leaders and elected officials," Henry Wojtaszek, CEO & president of Western Regional Off-Track Betting, said in a statement. "Many of the more than 400 jobs here at Batavia Downs would be in jeopardy if a Rochester-area casino opened, and the millions of dollars in revenue we send to 15 counties and the cities of Buffalo and Rochester would be drastically cut. There are already 10 gaming facilities less than 100 miles in any direction from Rochester, that's the definition of saturation.

"The three VLT facilities (Batavia Downs, Finger Lakes Gaming and Hamburg Gaming) paid $140 million dollars in combined taxes to New York state last year, that is more than the Senecas did. What is the point of putting yet another facility in the region? No major decision like this should ever be made without robust public input and a comprehensive economic impact analysis. When you see this type of secret top-down governing from our elected officials it is fair to question their motives and who they are really serving."

Opponents of the proposed casino also rallied in downtown Rochester at the Liberty Pole on Friday, according to WXXI News. They included members of the clergy, activists, state lawmakers and union and business representatives.

The current gaming compact expires in December.

Seneca Nation President Rickey Armstrong, Sr.'s full statement:

"The Executive Chamber's non-committal approach and the Assembly's decision to place special interests over the benefits of this historic agreement at the eleventh hour is despicable.

The Seneca Nation announced an agreement with New York State that we believe represents a fair deal for everyone. The Governor's negotiating team spent 11 months negotiating the terms of this agreement. The parties arrived at an agreement that we believed was allowable under the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, while still benefiting the State and, particularly, local communities. The Nation did so with terms that would still provide the Seneca Nation with fair value for what, even under new terms, would remain one of the highest exclusivity share payments in the country. The State Senate approved the deal overwhelmingly, recognizing the mutual benefits the agreement would provide to the State and the Nation.

Upon hearing that Rochester leaders were frustrated at their lack of understanding of the deal, apparently having been kept in the dark by their Executive, the Nation met with local Rochester leaders to address their concerns. The Nation promised to work together to site any future casino in a location that worked for local communities. And yet, the Nation's attempts to rectify that lack of understanding have fallen short, and the Nation is once again reminded that Native Nations in the State of New York are secondary to corporate interests. By failing to advance this bill, the Assembly is telling the Seneca Nation we don't even deserve the opportunity to start those conversations.

The blame for keeping Rochester officials out of the loop lays directly at the feet of the Executive. The Executive and the Nation agreed not to negotiate through the press or in public, but contrary to media coverage, the parties never entered into a Non-Disclosure Agreement. The Nation regularly consulted our own legislative branch, and expected that the Executive was doing the same. The Executive's claim that it was legally barred from communicating with other State officials is simply inaccurate. The Executive was free to communicate with local officials throughout the process, on what it was negotiating for and what it agreed to. The failure of the Executive to communicate with its own government speaks to the utter disregard the Governor had for this process.

Over 20 years, the Seneca Nation's gaming operations have generated more than $2 billion for the state and more than $500 million for local governments — revenues that have been transformational for our partners in Niagara Falls, Salamanca and Buffalo. We employ thousands of Western New Yorkers, and have provided thousands of union construction jobs. A decision not to bring this legislation to a vote is a decision to allow our compact to expire. It is a decision to throw 5,000 Western New York jobs into peril. It is a decision to jeopardize the well-being of more than 8,000 Seneca individuals and families. And it is a decision to disregard federal law. The Seneca Nation will not sit idly by while the State once again fails its obligations to Native Nations.

The powers behind this decision should not be ignored. We were told that Governor Hochul recused herself, and yet, Finger Lakes Gaming, owned by Delaware North, led the charge to defeat the renewal of the Seneca Nation's compact. Their statement opposing the compact released on Monday is proof positive. Now, the greatest beneficiary of the Nation's expiring compact is Delaware North itself, as the company also operates Hamburg Gaming near Buffalo. Corporate executives at Delaware North will celebrate this Father's Day weekend, thankful that the State has once again protected their interests at the expense of a Native Nation.

The Nation is also disappointed that the Executive has been content to let its own deal die on the vine. Had this been a priority for them, we would have seen statements of support for the bill, communications that the Nation-State compact is a priority, or applying the full weight of the Executive Branch. The Executive has been silent. The Executive Chamber's choice not to promote its own deal with the Seneca Nation speaks volumes — Governor Hochul may have recused herself from negotiations, but apparently could not recuse her own staff from the expectation that they prioritize corporate interests, Delaware North first and foremost, over those of a sovereign Native Nation.

New York has spent the last several years expanding gaming, whether through new commercial casinos or opening up mobile sports betting to a billion dollars in wagers each year. The state has time and time again lowered the tax rate on the Seneca Nation's competitors, placing the Nation at a competitive disadvantage. Just this session the Legislature has approved millions in tax relief to racinos. All this has come at the expense of Indian gaming and the Seneca's gaming enterprises. Yet, when the time comes to consider a fair deal for the Seneca Nation, the state turns its back and finds any argument to protect well-connected, non-Indian gaming interests.

The Seneca Nation once again implores the Assembly to do what is right — to ratify a hard-fought agreement that recognizes the right of the Seneca Nation to participate in gaming within its Aboriginal lands — lands seized from the Nation and lands that it was forced from by New York itself. Failure to do so will cost the Seneca Nation, Western New York, and ultimately, New York State."