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Cherokee casino gets card dealers
Governor, tribe sign 30-year pact for casino
8:47 PM, Nov. 28, 2011**|**
Cherokee casino gets card dealers
Governor, tribe sign 30-year pact for casino
8:47 PM, Nov. 28, 2011**|** Comments
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Written by
Jon Ostendorff
FILED UNDER
News
RALEIGH ? Harrah?s Cherokee Casino will soon have Las Vegas-style card dealers under an agreement with Gov. Bev Perdue signed on Monday.
Lawmakers must support the deal with changes to the state?s gambling law.
The card dealers will mean an estimated 400 new jobs at the casino, already one of the largest employers in Western North Carolina and millions of dollars more in profits for the tribe.
The state will get a cut of the new games starting at 4 percent for the first five years and increasing to 8 percent for the last five years.
The money will go to schools, Perdue said.
The agreement, known as a gaming compact, will last for 30 years. Perdue and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians have been negotiating for months.
Principal Chief Michell Hicks, who has been working on the deal for eight years, said it would be an economic benefit to the tribe and WNC.
His negotations spanned the term of two governors.
?It?s definitely a burden lifted,? he said. ?It?s just been sitting there for a long time, so it feels great know we have finally pushed the ball to a new level.?
Leaders in the House and Senate have said they would support the deal.
The legislature must modify the gambling law to allow card dealers in Cherokee.
The agreement gives the tribe exclusive rights to operate the only casino west of Interstate 26. In exchange, the tribe will give part of the profits to the state. They will go to a yet-to-be-named ?education initiative.?
Perdue, in letters to the tribe, has said she wants the money for the NC Pre-K program, which is not currently funded. She also wants tuition assistance for math, science and engineering fields.
Allocating the gambling money is something that Perdue, a Democrat, and Republican leaders disagree on.
The governor wants the money to go straight to schools while ranking lawmakers want it to go into the state?s general fund.
Cherokee casino gets card dealers
Governor, tribe sign 30-year pact for casino
8:47 PM, Nov. 28, 2011**|**
Cherokee casino gets card dealers
Governor, tribe sign 30-year pact for casino
8:47 PM, Nov. 28, 2011**|** Comments
A
A
Written by
Jon Ostendorff
FILED UNDER
News
RALEIGH ? Harrah?s Cherokee Casino will soon have Las Vegas-style card dealers under an agreement with Gov. Bev Perdue signed on Monday.
Lawmakers must support the deal with changes to the state?s gambling law.
The card dealers will mean an estimated 400 new jobs at the casino, already one of the largest employers in Western North Carolina and millions of dollars more in profits for the tribe.
The state will get a cut of the new games starting at 4 percent for the first five years and increasing to 8 percent for the last five years.
The money will go to schools, Perdue said.
The agreement, known as a gaming compact, will last for 30 years. Perdue and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians have been negotiating for months.
Principal Chief Michell Hicks, who has been working on the deal for eight years, said it would be an economic benefit to the tribe and WNC.
His negotations spanned the term of two governors.
?It?s definitely a burden lifted,? he said. ?It?s just been sitting there for a long time, so it feels great know we have finally pushed the ball to a new level.?
Leaders in the House and Senate have said they would support the deal.
The legislature must modify the gambling law to allow card dealers in Cherokee.
The agreement gives the tribe exclusive rights to operate the only casino west of Interstate 26. In exchange, the tribe will give part of the profits to the state. They will go to a yet-to-be-named ?education initiative.?
Perdue, in letters to the tribe, has said she wants the money for the NC Pre-K program, which is not currently funded. She also wants tuition assistance for math, science and engineering fields.
Allocating the gambling money is something that Perdue, a Democrat, and Republican leaders disagree on.
The governor wants the money to go straight to schools while ranking lawmakers want it to go into the state?s general fund.