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The federal government still has to sign off on a 25-year agreement between the Seminole tribe and the state, but that step is a formality.  In return, the Seminoles will have card games like blackjack, slot machines, but not roulette or craps, at 7 Indian casinos.  The state gets a $50-million dollar payment upfront and a cut of the tribe’s gaming revenue going forward.  The deal could be worth $1 billion over the first 5 years, but horse and dog track owners worry that it will mean fewer customers for them.  Governor Charlie Crist says he did not want to risk the state getting nothing.

“The same thing would have been made available to the Seminole tribe and no money would have come to the taxpayers of Florida that we could hopefully utilize to pay teachers,” Gov. Crist said.  “So given that circumstance, I don’t really feel like I had a choice.”

If lawmakers ever approve an expansion of gambling in Florida, the state gets nothing from the tribe.