Gov. Jerry Brown Monday signed a bill ratifying a new gaming compact between the state of California and the Barona Band of Mission Indians, which runs a popular casino on its Lakeside-area reservation.
“Barona has been a champion of education in San Diego County and an ideal neighbor, having donated more than $30 million to local community organizations,” said Assembly Speaker Emeritus Toni Atkins, who wrote the law along with fellow San Diego Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez.
“I’m pleased to have authored the bill that updates a great partnership between the people of California and the people of Barona,” Atkins said.
The compact, ratified via Assembly Bill 291, supersedes an agreement signed in 1999, providing an updated framework for the sharing of gambling revenue with the county and other local jurisdictions to mitigate off- reservation impacts.
The compact also includes environmental and workforce protections, provides revenue sharing with non-gaming tribes and maintains consumer protections while respecting the sovereignty of the tribe, according to Atkins.
–City News Service
