Richland casino paying $500K in gambling taxes asks city to oppose tribal gaming in Pasco
The city of Richland won’t support a local casino manager who wants to keep tribal gaming away from the Tri-Cities.
Max Faulkner, managing partner of Atomic Bowl and Joker’s Casino & Nightclub, asked the city’s elected leaders to oppose plans by the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation to open the Tri-Cities’ first tribal casino near King City in Pasco.
Faulkner said the tribal casino would be unfair competition to existing businesses and would threaten 140 Richland jobs and the $500,000 in gambling taxes his business pays to the city each year.
This week, the city said it would not join his efforts.
“After thoughtful consideration, the city councilmembers who have responded have indicated that while they appreciated Mr. Faulkner’s comments, they do not wish to take a position against the proposed Colville casino plan for Pasco at this time,” the city said in a statement released by Hollie Alexander, its spokeswoman.
Faulkner told the Tri-City Herald he plans to make similar requests to neighboring cities and state officials.
Six years and counting
The Colville purchased land in 2019 and announced it intended to develop a fourth version of its 12 Tribes casino business using the federal fee-to-trust process.
The 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act empowers tribes to site casinos outside of their reservations. The Colville have three — at Omak, Lake Chelan and Coulee Dam.
The Colville, based in Nespelem, about 160 miles north of the Tri-Cities, submitted the project to the Bureau of Indian Affair. The status of the application is uncertain after BIA missed a 2024 deadline to issue a key report on the scope of an environmental review.
In February, the Colville reaffirmed their intent to proceed with the Pasco plan, saying it will provide jobs and resources to its members. The Confederated Tribes of the Yakama Nation and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation reaffirmed their opposition.
Both cite treaty objections and say a tribal casino in Pasco would draw business away from their casinos in Toppenish and near Pendleton, Ore., respectively.
The Colville could not be reached to comment on Faulkner’s objections.
A new governor
Faulkner said he’s been concerned about the Colville plan since 2019, when the tribes purchased a collection of parcels near Highway 395 at the Kartchner Road exit.
He waited to step forward, saying he wanted to wait for Washington to seat a new governor. State governors have the final say on tribal casinos.
Former Gov. Jay Inslee routinely approved such casinos.
Faulkner said he supports on-reservation casinos and praised Washington tribes for operating businesses that support their members.
However, tribal casinos can offer machine gaming, higher betting limits, roulette, craps and sports betting. The Richland casino is prohibited from offering the same lineup and stands to lose business.
Another difference between tribal and non-tribal: The Washington Gambling Commission requires non-tribal casinos to keep tabs on gamblers who voluntarily exclude themselves from casinos for specified periods of time.
Once someone enrolls, non-tribal casinos must add them to their in-house lists. If they spot someone gambling in their businesses, they’re required to stop them and confiscate any chips.
Failure could lead to discipline or even the loss of a state gambling license.
Gambling taxes enrich cities
Atomic Bowl has stopped a dozen self-excluders, typically when staff recognize a regular customer. Staff are trained annually about the list and how to stay in compliance, he said.
Tribal casinos don’t have to maintain or track the list, he said.
Faulkner said any loss of business could be costly to the city. Washington law allows cities that authorize local gambling to collect taxes on various activities. Richland’s budget includes $550,000 in gambling tax receipts. Faulkner said most comes from Atomic Bowl.
“We pay $500,000 to Richland in gambling taxes,” he said. “Tribes don’t pay any of that.”
Kennewick and Pasco receive more than $1.6 million each in gambling taxes, in part because they are home to their own non-tribal casinos, Coyote Bob’s Roadhouse in Kennewick and Crazy Moose in Pasco.
Atomic Bowl and Joker’s offers bowling, a card room, small casino, comedy club, food and other activities after the current owners invested in a turnaround after the Great Recession left it battered by debt.
Faulkner believes the Colville casino will lure business away from him and from the Kennewick and Pasco casinos, both operated by Maverick Gaming.
Maverick could not be reached. However, a federal judge dismissed its legal challenge to tribal gaming rules in 2023.