Minnesota slot machine casino gambling consists of 19 tribal casinos with video slot machines and limited table games with cards. There are also two pari-mutuel wagering sites in the state, but no slot machines are at these racetrack facilities.
Cass Lake is home of the Chippewa National Forest, Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, and five of Minnesota's largest lakes. The Ojibwe offer many colorful Pow-Wow celebrations that are open to the public and operate three casinos, offering a variety of gaming experiences and ethnic foods. It may have taken 20+ years; but MN finally made it right to the people and fishery of Cass Lake. You better believe I will be there supporting the community that made it happen!! See you in December of this year on Cass Lake, with a spear in my hand and a smile on my face. The angler must immediately let go any walleye that falls between the lengths of 16 through 19 inches. On Cass County's Leech Lake, the walleye slot length extends from 18 inches to 26 inches. Any walleye with those measurements must go back into the depths as soon as possible.
Minimum and maximum payout return limits have been legally set within tribal-state compacts. However, actual payout return statistics are not publicly available.
This post continues the weekly series Online Resource: A State-By-State Slot Machine Casino Gambling Series, an online resource dedicated to guiding slot machine casino gambling enthusiasts to success. Each weekly post reviews slots gambling in a single U.S. state, territory, or the federal district.
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The minimum legal gambling age in Minnesota depends upon the gambling activity:
Minnesota had prohibited gambling prior to its statehood. In fact, the 1851 territorial legislature enacted strict prohibitions against all forms of gambling. This prohibition held for nearly a century and still influences legalized gambling in Minnesota.
The convoluted history of legalized gambling in Minnesota from 1945 through 2005 is well-documented via a 95-page report called Gambling in Minnesota: A Short History available online from the Minnesota House Research Department.
Minnesota’s tribal casinos are located on their reservations. Establishment of tribal gaming regulations was through negotiated state-tribal compacts subsequently approved by the U.S. Department of Interior. Minnesota tribes were the first in the U.S. to negotiate and sign gaming compacts with a state government.
Minnesota has 11 federally-recognized American Indian tribes. Along with these tribes, Minnesota has negotiated 22 tribal-state compacts to produce 19 tribal casinos in the state.
Each tribe has two compacts, one for video games of chance and a second for limited table games with cards. Tribal casinos operate under a combination of state law, tribal ordinance, and tribal-state compacts. Not regulated by the state are Class II competition-style games.
These gaming compacts permit Class III Vegas-style games but are explicitly restricted to blackjack and non-banked card games, such as poker, as well as video games of chance. These electronic video games include video poker, video keno, video slots, and others.
The gaming compacts stipulate the Minnesota Department of Public Safety is responsible for the inspection and approval of these video gaming machines. Both parties agreed that the compacts should be effective in perpetuity but re-negotiations can occur if desired by both parties.
The Minnesota state government makes all tribal-state compacts publicly available at its Tribal-State Gaming Compacts webpage, consisting of 100 downloadable pdf files.
*The purpose of this section is to inform the public of state gambling laws and how the laws apply to various forms of gambling. This information is not intended to provide legal advice.
Private ownership of slot machines is legal in Minnesota, without restriction regarding the
Minnesota has six gaming control boards for various aspects of gambling oversight, including:
The tribal-state compacts provide for inspection and approval of video gaming machines by the AEGD, licensing of casino employees, machine payout percentages, and regulation of the play of blackjack.
Specific overall responsibilities of the AEGD include:
There are currently 19 American Indian tribal casinos offering video slot machines in Minnesota.
The largest casino in Minnesota is Mystic Lake Casino Hotel in Prior Lake, having over 3,500 gaming machines and nearly 100 table games.
The second largest casino is Treasure Island Resort and Casino in Welch, having over 2,200 gaming machines and 50 table games.
Minnesota’s two pari-mutuel facilities Canterbury Park and Running Aces offer blackjack and non-banked card games such as poker but are legally prohibited from offering slot machines.
Minnesota’s 19 tribal casinos are:
As an alternative to enjoying Minnesota slot machine casino gambling, consider exploring casino options in a nearby state.
Minnesota is bordered by:
Each of the links above will take you to my state-specific blog for that bordering state to Minnesota.
Per tribal-state gaming compacts, the minimum and maximum payout returns for slot machines are 80% and 95%, respectively, over the lifetime of the game.
Further, video keno and similar games specifically called out in these compacts have a theoretical payout percentage requirement of no less than 75% applied to each number of spots marked per wager.
Video games of chance affected by player skill such as video poker and video blackjack, have a minimum and maximum payout return of 83% and 98%, respectively, again over the lifetime of the game. These limits assume optimal play of these skill-based games.
It’s not required of Minnesota’s American Indian tribal casinos to provide actual values for their payout percentages. However, Little Six Casino currently states on their website that they have the loosest slots in Minnesota, claiming to have a 95% payout return.
Are you interested in sharing and learning with other slots enthusiasts in Minnesota? If so, join our new Minnesota slots community on Facebook. All you’ll need is a Facebook profile to freely join this closed Facebook Group.
There, you’ll be able to privately share your slots experiences as well as chat with players about slots gambling in or near Minnesota. Come join us!
In summary, Minnesota slot machine casino gambling consists of 19 tribal casinos with video machines including video slots. Otherwise, no slot machines are offered in Minnesota.
Minimum and maximum payout return limits are 80% and 95% for video slot machines. Video keno has a lower payout return limit of 75%. For skill-based games such as video poker and video blackjack, these limits are instead 83% and 98% but assume a perfect playing strategy for optimal play.
In the last year, an additional tribal casino has opened, the Shooting Star Casino Bagley near Chippewa National Forest in northern Minnesota.
Archive: Minnesota Slot Machine Casino Gambling in 2017
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