A spokesperson for the Pala Band of Mission Indians said the tribe has nothing to do with any California sports betting petitions, refuting previous accounts to the contrary.
It’s Not Us
It was initially reported that the Pala Band of Mission Indians planned to file an online sports betting initiative during the 2024 California legislative session. However, that report appears to be false as the Pala Tribe has declined to move forward.
The actual petitioners of this most recent effort had discussions with the Palas but they ultimately rebuffed the idea, which is apparently how their name got tossed into the mix.
One of the petitioners, Reeve Collins, served as co-founder and CEO of Pala Interactive from 2012-15. Pala Interactive has been subsequently purchased by Boyd Gaming for $170 million in 2022.
Collins stated, “These acts are designed to protect CA tribes and CA taxpayers who are seeing their dollars go to offshore unregulated gaming sites.”
Who Did It?
The sponsors associated with this most recent attempt to get sports betting in front of the voters are the aforementioned Reeve Collins along with Kasey Thompson, and Ryan Tyler Walz. Thompson allegedly sent a letter to tribal leaders after filing the initiative but it was deemed offensive by its recipients.
Victor Rocha, conference chairman of the Indian Gaming Association, tweeted last Friday: “This thing is so dead. Kasey Thompson & Ryan Tyler Walz are morons. You heard it here first.”
“Whoever is bankrolling this would be better off putting their money on a roulette wheel. Or save time and just burn it,” tweeted Howard Glaser, global head of government affairs and legislative counsel at Light & Wonder.
Political Logjam
California would immediately become the largest sports betting market in the nation if it opened up, but there has been pushback from the tribes, and as of this writing it lays dormant. The last effort to get sports betting legalized in the Golden State came via Prop 26 and Prop 27, but both of those bills were defeated in 2022.
It has become a clash of lobbyists, tribal nations, and government stakeholders all pushing and pulling in opposite directions to get the best deal. The effort would have to start at the polls and get the will of the people behind it.
With so much political advertising, pro and con, regarding sports betting before it last went to the voters, it is not difficult to understand why there was mass confusion.
“The key takeaway from the election is that any future gaming expansion in California must go through the tribes,” said San Manuel chief intergovernmental affairs officer Dan Little.
What Now?
The quickest the topic can be taken up by the legislature is 2024, but getting the stakeholders to agree is a task so far removed at this point that it would be a miracle if an agreement was forged within the next several months.
And the fact that California will likely need a constitutional amendment to get sports betting into the marketplace makes this even more complicated.
Calculators
