Seneca Nations of Indians President Rickey Armstrong Sr. and NY Governor Kathy Hochul agree to Gaming Compact extension (December 1, 2023)
New York State and the Seneca Nation of Indians have agreed to a short-term extension of the current Gaming Compact.
Governor Kathy Hochul and the Seneca Nation of Indians President Rickey Armstrong Sr. announced the extension Friday night. The current compact was set to expire on December 9.
The extension pushes the deadline for a new agreement to March 31.
Under the short-term extension, the three gaming properties operated by the Seneca Nation can remain open and operating. The current compact will stay in place after March 31 unless a new deal is reached or either party decides to end it.
In a statement, Armstrong said, “No issue is of greater importance to the economies of Western New York and the Seneca Nation than a fair Compact. Tens of thousands of individuals, families and businesses across Western New York are depending on an agreement that secures the significant jobs, business opportunities, and economic benefits the Seneca Nation delivers to the Western New York economy.”
Hochul said “With the signing of this agreement, there is important momentum for negotiations around the compact. I remain committed to working with President Armstrong and the Seneca Nation in finalizing an agreement that is fair to all parties, and I look forward to more conversations in the coming weeks and months as we continue to meet.”
State Senator George Borrello welcomed the news of the extension and said in a statement, “The Seneca Nation is a valued neighbor in Western New York and their gaming facilities and resorts are a major economic driver. This agreement relieves a measure of uncertainty that has increasingly clouded this issue as the expiration date approached.
I urge the Hochul administration to use this extension productively rather than as an excuse to kick the can down the road. The Governor and her team need to come to the table with a commitment to engaging in good faith negotiations on an agreement that is fair to all parties. That commitment has been lacking in this process up until now.
The gaming landscape has changed profoundly in the last two decades and any new agreement should reflect that while simultaneously assuring that critical funding to host communities is sustained.”
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