Prop 70 was submitted by the Agua Caliente Tribe and will be decided on the Nov. 2 ballot.

Is California ready for unlimited casinos with unlimited slot machines and no restrictions on the types of gambling allowed?

Proposition 70 very clearly allows "each tribal government to choose the number and size of the gaming facilities to operate and the type of games offered." Prop 70 will place all decision-making powers in tribal governments on how many casinos they operate, how many slot machines they want, and what types of gambling they will permit. This pushes "sovereignty" to the extreme.

Proposition 70 will replace the current 20-year tribal compacts with new agreements that will saddle California with 99-year leases. What kind of social environment will encompass our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren for the next century? We will become the Gambling Capital of the World!

The publicized "fair share" of Proposition 70 is a hoax. Tribes pay no state or federal corporation taxes, no sales taxes, no assessments. These huge exceptions will continue. "Fair share" is defined as the "equivalent to the amount of corporation taxes that a private California corporation pays to the State." This is not much more than the sales taxes that we all pay on our normal purchases of clothing, furniture and automobile supplies. Proposition 70 exempts tribes from State audits and verification of casino profits.

Proposition 70 fails to deal with inadequate roads, traffic congestion, law enforcement needs, legal immunities, noise, air and water pollution, overcrowded schools, and environmental concerns that are plaguing neighborhoods near tribal casinos. Proposition 70 does nothing to mitigate these serious deficiencies.

The very generous provisions of Proposition 70 will give even more wealth and political clout to gambling tribes - the new "500-pound gorilla" in California politics. Tribes are now the major financial contributors to many California politicians. Gambling corrupts politics.

Are we prepared for 99 years of addictions, embezzlements, bankruptcies, marital disputes, suicides and increased crime that are associated with the expansion of gambling? Proposition 70 will vastly expand gambling, enriching a few at the impoverishment of many. It will alter the social, economic, and political environment of California.

The sponsors of Proposition 70 are demanding everything, while offering nothing except more opportunities to lose money. Voting NO on Proposition 70 is our last chance to halt the uncontrolled proliferation of tribal casinos in California.

Proposition 70 is simply a bad bet for California's future.

California Coalition Against Gambling Expansion
803 Vallejo Way, Sacramento, CA 95818 (916) 441-1844