New York State Governor David Paterson again finds himself in a battle with the Seneca Nation, a Native American group that enjoys special treaty rights and considers itself separate from the state.
The latest issue between the two groups is the state's claim that the Senecas owe over $200 million in revenue-sharing payments. The payments are required under a 2001 compact that permits the Senecas to operate three gambling casinos in Western New York, including the popular Seneca Niagara Casino in Niagara Falls.
If the Senecas fail to make the payments speedily, the state is threatening to shut the casinos down. That is quite the threat; the Seneca Niagara Casino is definitely one of the biggest attractions in the area and figures to bring in a whole lot more money than most other things around.
The state may try to temporarily shut the casinos down to scare the Senecas into paying up, but the editorial board feels that the state needs those casinos just as bad as the Senecas, making a permanent shutdown highly unlikely.
The Senecas are refusing to abide by the revenue-sharing agreement because they say the state has already breached the compact by violating the Senecas' exclusivity rights. To make it simple, the Seneca casinos are supposed to be the only form of legal gambling in the state.
Both groups disagree about whether state-permitted gambling at places such as the Buffalo Raceway in Hamburg violates those exclusivity rights.
We feel like the problem is bigger than a sudden disagreement about the casino payments. As this new development comes just weeks after the state announced that it would attempt to collect taxes on Seneca tobacco products, it seems like the governor is trying any way possible to collect the Native Americans' money.
It's starting to feel more and more like a grudge match.
After all, if the state wasn't desperate for any source of revenue in the midst of a terrible financial crisis, we don't think the state would be so willing to take such a hard line with the Senecas.
It's always tricky when these two groups have to deal with each other. The Senecas often say that they are a "sovereign nation" completely separate from the state, but they truly do rely on many state resources, such as road maintenance, police protection and public schools.
A truly sovereign nation would have to be entirely self-sufficient, and you'd have to go through customs to get back and forth. Obviously, that is never going to happen, and the Senecas do have a responsibility to negotiate with the state peacefully (some Senecas consider blocking the New York State Thruway a form of negotiation).
As there is so much history and bad blood involved, it is never about the simple letter of the law when dealing with the Native Americans, and the state must realize that. At the same time, the Senecas need to come around and negotiate with the state, recognizing that they, too, will benefit from a balanced state budget.
