Senecas announce framework for a new gaming compact but details still need to be worked out

Rick Pfeiffer -, Niagara Gazette, Niagara Falls, N.Y.
·4 min read

Jun. 8—The Seneca Nation of Indians says it has an "agreement in principle" with New York state for a new 20-year gaming compact covering the operations of its Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino in Niagara Falls, as well as gaming operations in Buffalo and Salamanca.

But the devil may be in the details of the agreement, which, according to those with close knowledge of the ongoing negotiations between the tribe and the state, have not been finalized. Among those details would be the amount of revenue sharing the tribe would provide to the state from casino operations.

Seneca Nation President Rickey Armstrong Jr. told reporters on Wednesday afternoon, "The tentative agreement comes after several months of negotiations which at times were tense. Now we believe we have a fair path forward."

Under the current gaming compact, the Seneca Nation is permitted to operate three "class III gaming" facilities, which included slot machines, table games and, more recently, sports books. The casinos also offer other amenities typical of Las Vegas-style casinos.

In return for the right to exclusively operate its casinos in areas "west of State Route 14", the Seneca Nation and its gaming corporation pay, on a quarterly basis, 25% of its revenues on slot machines and other gaming devices to New York state. The state then distributes that revenue to the casino host communities of the Falls, Buffalo and Salamanca.

While all of the tribal revenue sent to Buffalo and Salamanca is spent under the control of those municipalities, the funds sent to the Falls are shared, by state law, between the city, the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority, the Niagara Falls Board of Education, the Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Commission, the Niagara Tourism and Convention Corporation, the Niagara Falls Housing Authority, Mount Saint Mary's Neighborhood Health Center and Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center.

Those provisions were negotiated by former State Sen. George Maziarz (R-North Tonawanda), who represented the Falls at the time the original compact was negotiated.

Falls Schools Superintendent Mark Laurrie was cautiously optimistic about the Seneca Nation announcement.

"I think it's wonderful," he said. "As long as the (school district and other non-municipal entities) are still funded the same. We can point to tangible uses of that money for kids and the community."

It's not clear when tribal and state negotiators will meet to hammer out "the details," including the financial terms of the agreement. Armstrong said only that he believed the way was clear for lawmakers in the state legislature to move forward with authorization of a final agreement "in the coming days."

"Negotiating a fair compact is critical to the future of the Seneca Nation and the future of Western New York," Armstrong said. "Throughout the negotiations, our focus remained on providing a fair and equitable dealt that secured the future of our gaming operations."

Sources with knowledge of the tribe's negotiating priorities have suggested that the Senecas may look to decrease the percentage of their current revenue sharing. The gaming industry, since the pandemic, has seen a significant decline in its revenues from slot machines and other electronic devices.

However, overall gaming revenues have boomed as a result of the the legalization of sports books in 36 states and the District of Columbia, along with online betting.

Falls Mayor Robert Restaino called the news of the agreement encouraging.

"They have broken through the emotion (of negotiations)," Restaino said. "We need to come up with a fair deal."

Armstrong did not say whether the agreement addresses bitter complaints from the nation over the state's decision to allow slot machines to be operated at horse racing tracks across New York. The nation president also said New York Governor Kathy Hochul has not been actively involved in the negotiations.

"This is not the end of the process, but rather a pathway toward the end," Armstrong said. "We hope to move as quickly as possible toward finalizing the terms and securing all necessary approvals to enact what we believe will be another historic agreement that builds upon what we have accomplished over the past two decades."

Any final agreement will need to be approved in a referendum vote by the members of the Seneca Nation and by the United States Department of the Interior and the New York State Legislature.