Arizona’s Tribes’ Slot Machines and Table Games Bring in $250 Million

The state of Arizona is a quarter of a billion dollars richer since they reached an agreement with the Tribes that live in their state. In the spring of 2003, in exchange for being allowed to bring in blackjack and more slot machines, Arizona’s Indian Casinos agreed to share their revenue with the state. The state was not prepared for how well it would turn out for them.

The state has 15 gaming tribes, who gave to the state $15.1 million for the quarter ending December 31, 2006. This amount is a 13.7% increase from the previous year’s slot machine and gaming revenue numbers. This will total the amount of revenue to the state from the tribes to $251.4 million over the past four years. The money is earmarked for their schools, as they get half of the revenue.

From the most recent payment, the schools will get $7.1 million – and the rest of the money goes to various services within the state. Some will go to gambling addiction programs; some will go to tourism funds, or emergency services. The gaming department gets $2 million for operating expenses.

The revenue comes from 23 Indian casinos, owned by 15 tribes. The tribes own 12,806 slot machines and 290 table games. They have almost 3,100 slot machines in Tucson alone. The deal is that the tribes pay 1% of the first $25 million that they earn in profit, 3% of the next $50 million, 6% of the next $25 million, and 8% after that.

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