by Jan Har

Competition for Portland's casino market shifted to Capitol Hill on Wednesday, with leaders of the Cowlitz, Warm Springs and Grand Ronde tribes testifying on a U.S. House proposal to restrict off-reservation casinos.

The draft bill unveiled last week by U.S. Rep. Richard Pombo, R-Calif., would require local counties, Legislatures and nearby tribes to approve any casino built off-reservation or on newly restored tribal land. Currently, such projects require the consent of the governor, with the U.S. interior secretary giving the final OK.

Nationally, the legislation is an attempt to curb rising friction among tribes and communities as more tribes try to move closer to urban hubs.

In Oregon, Gov. Ted Kulongoski has approved a proposal by the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs for an off-reservation casino in Cascade Locks, about 40 miles east of Portland. This has prompted a high-profile opposition campaign from the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, which operates the casino closest to Portland and the most profitable in Oregon.

At the same time, the Cowlitz Indian Tribe, which has no land of its own, has applied to the federal government to make its reservation in La Center, Wash., 16 miles north of Portland. It wants to build a casino resort on the west side of Interstate 5.

Cheryle Kennedy, chairwoman of the Grand Ronde's tribal council, said both proposals would have "potentially devastating effects on our ability to provide critical" services and jobs for her members.

Chairmen for the Cowlitz and Warm Springs similarly argued their need to provide their members with economic self-sufficiency. The Warm Springs reservation, for example, is in a remote pocket of Central Oregon, far from tourist traffic and 40 miles east of Cascade Locks, said Chairman Ron Suppah.

Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., whose district includes the Warm Springs reservation and Cascade Locks, said it is not fair to change rules midstream unless current proposals are exempt from future restrictions. Walden, who sits on the House Resources Committee that oversees tribal issues, supports the Warm Springs proposal.

Walden said effectively banning off-reservation casinos would "relegate rural tribes to perpetual poverty and urban tribes to perpetual riches."

Justin Martin, a lobbyist for the Grand Ronde, agreed on the need to face up to the issue.

"You're starting to see this balance in gaming in Oregon start to tip a little bit," Martin said. "What is too much? Are Oregonians comfortable with the status quo?"

David Barnett, a spokesman for the Cowlitz, blasted the Grand Ronde for interfering in what he called legitimate proposals by both his tribe and the Warm Springs.

"We're saddened that a tribe in another state over 100 miles away is trying to take away our only means for economic self sufficiency," he said.