Sacramento - Inland governments and tribes are fighting to preserve millions in payments meant to help public agencies deal with the burdens of the region's tribal casinos. Local cities, sheriff's departments and other agencies have collected more than USD 40 million in gambling mitigation payments from a tribe-funded account since 2005, the most in the state. The money has paid for everything from traffic signals to police officers.

Sacramento – In what may be a referendum on the future of Indian gambling in California, Propositions 94 to 97 ask whether four of the state's wealthiest tribes should be allowed to expand their gaming operations, perhaps dramatically, over the next 23 years. Underscoring the stakes involved, the heavyweight matchup already has burned through nearly USD 120 million, with more spending on the campaign to come before the Feb. 5 election.

Sacramento County court judges ruled that voters should decide the fate of four newly approved gambling agreements between the state and four Southern California American Indian tribes. The Morongo Band of Mission Indians near Banning and the Pechanga Band of Mission Indians near Temecula filed separate lawsuits to stop the voter referenda against the agreements.

Sacramento - A coalition of labor and horse racing interests announced Friday that it will ask voters to pull the plug on a huge tribal gambling expansion negotiated by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The owner of two racetracks and the hotel workers' union will team up on a campaign that could put four new initiatives on the February ballot and cost tens of millions of dollars. Some tribes with casinos that are not part of the expansion said they might join the effort.

Sacramento -- The Legislature removed a key hurdle to passing a state budget Thursday, agreeing to allow four Indian tribes to expand casino gambling in exchange for hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue to the state. The action ended what had been a lengthy legislative logjam that pitted two special interest titans: labor groups vs. casino-operating Indian tribes. The tribes won.

Sacramento - Labor unions Wednesday attacked a renegotiated gaming agreement with the Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians near Temecula, alleging that the deal, known as a compact, lacks protections for casino workers. A short while later, though, union leaders urged support for a nearly identical compact with the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians near Highland.