Key points:
- Under the new Tribal ordinance, charities and the state would receive less revenue
- The band says it will “promote tribal economic development and self-sufficiency”
Minnesota’s Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe has made changes to charitable gambling on its reservation, according to a Minnesota Star Tribune local news report.
Tribal leadership shared with local news that is focus will be on its community and governing body.
The band’s secretary and treasurer Leonard Fineday commented, “Our priority is our tribal government, our priority is our community.”
With these changes, pulltab revenue that funds local charities and nonprofits will be affected due to a possible restriction from operating in the reservation’s bars.
The state’s system requires nonprofits to pay 20% of what it collects from charitable gaming to the bars, with a sliding scale to the state of up to 35%.
However, the band’s ordinance would allow bars to keep up to 35%, with the band receiving “no less than 60%.”
Good to know: Players in Minnesota play pulltabs more than players in any other state
The state and its charities would not receive any funds under the band’s ordinance.
The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe has notified bars by letter, which states that “existing pulltab sales violate the band’s gaming ordinance and bars must obtain a license through the band.”
This process could take four months, according to the local report. To gain a necessary license, bars would be required to regularly offer electronic bingo games or operate electronic bingo slot machines.
Fineday emphasized that these changes do not mean charities will be left out completely.
