For Immediate Release: June 15, 2022

Media Contact: Elizabeth.Hess@sen.ca.gov

HURTADO RELEASES STATEMENT AFTER GOVERNOR NEWSOM SIGNS TRIBAL COMPACT WITH TEJON INDIAN TRIBE

SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, Senator Melissa Hurtado (D-Sanger) released a statement after Governor Gavin Newsom signed a tribal-state gaming compact with the Tejon Indian Tribe:

“The compact agreement with the Tejon Indian Tribe is the beginning of building something better,” said Senator Hurtado. "Kern County has a reputation as a community of leaders who come together to get things done, and that is exactly what they did to accomplish this major milestone. I feel confident Kern County and the Tejon Indian Tribe will work tirelessly with my office to pass SB 910, a critical and final component to ratify this compact. I appreciate the community's advocacy, and applaud the Governor for signing the tribal-state gaming compact."

“We, the 1200 members of the Tejon Indian Tribe of the Kitanemuk nation, extend a heartfelt thank you to Governor Newsom and his staff for their efforts, as well as State Senator Melissa Hurtado and the entire bipartisan delegation of Kern County lawmakers for their unwavering support,” said Octavio Escobedo III, Chair of the Tejon Indian Tribe.  “We’re looking forward to a long and rewarding partnership of mutual respect and cooperation between our Tribe and the State of California.”

Senate Bill 910 is the vehicle to ratify the tribal-state gaming compact between the State of California and the Tejon Indian Tribe. The Tribe’s proposed gaming facility, which will be located in Kern County, will create approximately 5,000 new jobs, including 3,300 permanent jobs and 1,600 temporary construction jobs, improving the local workforce opportunities.  

About Senator Melissa Hurtado

Senator Melissa Hurtado represents a new generation of Latina leaders, as the youngest woman ever elected to the California State Senate and as a product of immigrant parents. Senator Hurtado represents the 14th Senate District and focuses on rural community issues that often go unheard — access to clean air and water, food insecurity and poverty, inequities in environmental policies, agriculture and access to health care. In July 2020, she was appointed to the national Biden Latino Leadership Committee alongside former Labor Secretary and current Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis – the only two California Latinas on the Committee.

For more information, visit Senator Hurtado’s Website here or find her on Twitter at @Senator_Hurtado

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