April 17, 2007
Gambling Action Alert
DeKalb County Board to Meet Tomorrow Night
May negotiate with Indian Tribe for Bingo Hall
While there are no Indian reservations in Illinois, several tribes want to develop bingo halls, which could eventually become land-based casinos. Indian gambling is not regulated by the state. While bingo sounds harmless, the tribes can include "bingo slot" machines, blackjack, poker, and high-stakes bingo. The tribe could use the bingo parlor as leverage to become a land-based casino. If one tribe is allowed to come into Illinois to open a gambling facility, other tribes will want the same privilege. This will expand gambling in Illinois.
Last week the Chicago Tribune reported the DeKalb County Board "reversed its position on working with an American Indian tribe that wants to build a bingo hall near Shabbona. The DeKalb County Board's Executive Committee voted 7-1 to send the full board an 'agreement of purpose' to establish ground rules for negotiations regarding a 128-acre farm near Shabbona."
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/lake/chi-0704110781apr12,1,7444512.storyThe full board will consider the agreement tomorrow night. The Tribune reported "Board Chairman Ruth Ann Tobias said she expects it to be adopted in a close vote."
The De Kalb County Board will meet at 7:30 pm on Wednesday, April 18, at Legislative Center Gathertorium, 200 N. Main Street in Sycamore.
For Immediate Action
- If you live in DeKalb County, plan to attend the County Board Meeting and ask others to attend.
- Call the county board members and ask them to vote NO on the "agreement of purpose".
- Share this information with your church and/or organization.
DeKalb County Board Members
| Board Member | District | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| Marlene D. Allen | 12-R | Home: 815-786-8207 |
| Kenneth Andersen | 3-R | Home: 815-895-2565 |
| Larry A. Anderson | 1-R | Home: 815-825-2143 |
| Jerry Augsburger | 7-D | Home: 815-756-1709 |
| Sally DeFauw | 7-D | Home: 815-758-0369 |
| Eileen Dubin | 8-D | Home: 815-756-9103 |
| Vince R. Faivre | 11-R | Home: 815-758-5301 |
| Julia L. Fauci | 9-D | Home: 815-758-4195 |
| Julia Fullerton | 8-R | Home: 815-756-7876 |
| John Gudmunson | 11-R | Home: 815-498-2280 |
| Michael Haines | 2-D | Home: 815-784-3323 |
| John Hulseberg | 4-D | Home: 815-895-3587 |
| Patricia LaVigne | 10-R | Home: 815-756-5109 Work: 815-758-8282 |
| Howard J. Lyle | 2-R | Home: 815-784-5854 Work: 815-784-2271 |
| Jeffery Metzger | 12-R | Home: 815-786-8207 |
| Richard Osborne | 5-D | Home: 815-754-9650 |
| Robert Rosemier | 5-D | Home: 815-758-7317 |
| Roger Steimel | 3-R | Home/Work: 815-756-5092 |
| Paul Stoddard | 9-D | Home: 815-758-0617 |
| Michael Stuckert, Sr. | 1-R | Home: 815-739-1340 |
| Ruth Anne Tobias | 6-D | Home: 815-766-2707 Work: 815-753-0922 |
| Anita Jo Turner | 4-D | Home: 815-895-7507 |
| Patricia S. Vary | 10-D | Home: 815-787-2502 |
| Stephen R. Walt | 6-D | Home: 815-756-2760 |