Thank you for writing about HR 504
I just wanted to point out some interesting facts about HR504:
1) In 2003, an idea for being talked about with local officials in Shabbona, Il and State Officials about a $715 million dollar casino and retreat center in Dekalb County.
2) Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation Tribe already operates a casino with Harrah’s in Mayetta, Kansas.
3) In 2006, Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation Tribe purchased 128 acres just outside of Shabbona, IL
4) In an August 16, 2016, Daily Chronicle article Prairie Band quotes spokeswoman Tracy Stanoff. “Potawatomi Nation Tribal Chairwoman Tracy Stanhoff also acknowledged that while a “Las Vegas-style” casino on the land is not one of the options being considered, a bingo parlor is” While bingo might sound harmless, the tribes offer high-stakes bingo and electronic gambling devices that look and play like slot machines. The National Indian Gaming Commission has ruled that these machines are a version of bingo. “That distinction means American Indian tribes can offer the slotlike machines to the public without state consent or oversight.”
Shane Hartman
Executive Director ILCAAAP