He said there will be an impact on staff, and the MEDC could lose “some truly great, hardworking and talented people”.
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“The Tribe and the State began discussing this matter prior to the introduction of internet lottery sales”.
MEDC has expressed their disappointment over the fact that the tribe has withheld the $7 million and MEDC chief executive officer Steve Arwood stated that the organization would be forced to make job cuts in order to cope with the lack of funds.
The Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians owns the Gun Lake On line casino south of Grand Rapids.
Since they are exempt from state gaming taxes, Native American tribes that operate casinos throughout northern Michigan make payments to a state economic development fund through gaming compacts brokered by past governors.
The Tribe’s casino is located in Wayland.
“The state’s Lottery law provided the authority to develop and launch the online games option for players”.
“With careful management and a focus on our core mission, we will continue to help Michigan companies grow and expand in our state; attract new business investment that creates new jobs in Michigan; invest in revitalizing our communities; and market our state as one of America’s great destinations for quality living and travel”. “Despite these events, the tribe feels that a resolution to this disagreement is possible, which is why it made a state revenue sharing payment in December 2014 even though it was not required to do so”.
Gov. Rick Snyder recently had a “productive” meeting with Gun Lake tribal officials, spokesman Dave Murray said. He said the discussions were about differences of interpretation of the compact.
Annual payments from the tribe account for almost 25% of MEDC’s annual tribal casino revenue.
“As a result, our budget plans for the remainder of FY 15 and for the entirety of next year are being revised”, Arwood said.
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“It goes without saying that the scale and scope of our program must be reduced”, Arwood said.
