The only seat in Tuesday’s US elections to change party hands in California was the one previously held by seven-term incumbent Richard Pombo. Once described as the ‘most dangerous man in Congress,’ the Chairman of the House Resources Committee introduced a bill that seeks to make off-reservation shopping an impossibility for Indian tribes. Pombo also caused fury amongst environmentalists when he attempted to have the 1973 Endangered Species Act rewritten and supported drilling in the Arctic.

The National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA) opposes the passage of the Pombo bill, which proposes closing a perceived loophole in the 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA). The House Resources Committee has oversight and sets policies on natural resources, Indian Country and Indian Gaming. Ironically, Pombo’s defeat this week came at the hands of Democrat Jerry McNerney, a wind energy expert who has never held public office. Things are unlikely to be easy for the new House member for California’s 11th District, a Republican stronghold.

The Abramoff scandal had much to do with Richard Pombo being ousted; he faced accusations of having benefited from tribal donations by tribes not wanting to face competition from other tribes allowed to open off-reservation casinos. There are apparently 52 applications pending for off-reservation tribal casinos around the United States. McNerney will doubtless face a renewed Republican challenge in 2008. (E-11.10.06)

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