Just weeks after a new law came into effect, seven Native American tribes who own casinos in Sacramento County, California, have filed lawsuits against card rooms in the state, once again instigating an expensive and ongoing political battle. As a result, millions of dollars in tax revenue used for community projects and services is at risk.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 549 last year in September, which gives tribes three months to sue card rooms, starting January 1. The tribes filed the lawsuits as soon as the California courts opened their doors in 2025. The bill prevents the tribes from receiving money or attorneys’ fees as a result of the lawsuit. The main aim is for the judges to determine whether card rooms can continue to offer casino games, which are highly disputed.
Native tribes are alleging that the card rooms and gambling halls in the state are illegally offering traditional table games, like poker and blackjack, impacting the tribes’ gambling income.
In the lawsuit, the opening line reads, “Defendants brazenly profit from illegal gambling”. However, the card rooms are defending their practices, with a representative stating that California card rooms are compliant with state law and that the tribal casinos are attempting to shut down “lawful competition by tax-paying California businesses”. The card rooms are also convinced that the lawsuit will fail.
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Californian tribes have held on to exclusive gambling rights for many years, enabling them to host table games and benefit financially. Prior to SB549 being signed, tribes were considered sovereign governments and had no legal standing to sue the gambling halls and card rooms. Now, all that has changed.
It is reported by CBS News that the tribes were able to persuade lawmakers to pass the Senate Bill in a costly political battle over two years. The battle finally concluded in the summer of 2024. Notably, lawmakers who had tribal casinos in their districts were pushing to get the bill signed, while it was opposed by lawmakers who had smaller card rooms in their districts.
Should the tribes succeed, community and public funding will be in jeopardy. Several cities in the state receive almost half their budgets from tax revenues from gambling halls, and should these establishments be outlawed, local services will be impacted.
For example, Hawaii Gardens and Commerce, located in Los Angeles County, are both highly dependent on card rooms for their annual budgets. San Jose receives an estimated $30 million from card rooms per year, according to Council Member Sergio Jimenez. This money is then allocated to firefighters and police officers in the city.
The card rooms are sticking to their claims that all their activities are legal under approval by the attorney general’s office.
This is not the first time that California’s tribes attempted to push legislation in an attempt to sue other establishments. A failed attempt in 2022 saw the tribes spending millions to push similar initiatives onto establishments that offer sports betting. Should it have passed, the tribes would have been able to sue. Residents also voted against sports betting legalization in the same year.
Before the signing of SB549, both sides lobbied hard. From January 2023, around $4.3 million has been donated by the opposing sides to members of the Legislature. The card rooms viewed SB 549 as a major threat to their existence, which resulted in significant lobbying. Hawaiian Gardens Casino contributed $9.1 million to lobbying efforts, while Chevron Corp. reportedly spent even more.
Even though the battle was lost by the card rooms in September 2024, the industry has not gone down without a fight. The sector spent over $3 million leading up to last year’s presidential election to retaliate against the lawmakers who were directly involved in passing SB549. Three of these candidates ended up losing, including the author of the bill, Senator Josh Newman.
