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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 15, 2021)
sNok signflz OCTOBER 15, 2021 9 Tribal member purchases insurance agency By Danielle Harrison Smoke Signals staff writer SALEM – A chance meeting at one of the Tribe’s vaccination clinics last winter led to Tribal member Darrel Lawrence purchasing a Farmers Insurance branch in Salem. Lawrence, 54, was standing in a long line at a vaccination clinic when he noticed a man wearing a Farmers Insurance shirt. Law- rence, who was in the process of becoming an agent, started chat- ting with him and learned he was planning to sell his business. “I was working with the Eugene district and had planned to buy a location in Albany, but the owner kept dragging his feet,” Lawrence said. “So, I was really excited to learn there was one in Salem be- cause I live there. It was a thumbs up all around.” Lawrence officially took over oper- ations as of Sept. 1 and offers auto, home, renters, condominium, busi- ness and life insurance. He also has specialty insurance for items such as off-road vehicles and mobile homes. Lawrence’s last job was as a fi- nancial advisor with Merrill Lynch, so he is also able to offer retirement savings plans through Farmers. “That was another big attraction to this business for me,” he said. “I could still offer retirement plans as a licensed financial advisor.” His biggest challenge so far has Another challenge has simply been adjust- ing to a new business system and learning more about home and auto insurance ac- counts. “It’s taken some get- ting used to,” Lawrence said. The most enjoyable part of his new job has been the independence encouraged from the corporate office. “Farmers will coach you and support you, but also allows you to run your business as you see fit,” he said. Goals for the next year include growing the business, but like nearly everyone else, the labor shortage is Photo by Timothy J. Gonzalez affecting Lawrence. Tribal member and former Hatfield Fellow Darrel “I’m looking for some Lawrence recently purchased a Farmers Insurance people to work for me and they can make agency in Salem. their own schedule if been handling the day-to-day ser- they like,” he said. “It would be vicing of customer accounts. good for someone who is retired and “I’m trying to get over the hump wants to make some extra money. of people who are surprised the I’d also like to find a new office loca- former agent sold the business,” tion and grow my book of business.” Lawrence said. “It’s been challeng- Lawrence’s Tribal roots come ing convincing the customers I don’t from his mother, Victoria Tom Law- plan on going anywhere.” rence, and his grandfather, Leon “Chips” Tom, who also served on Tribal Council from 1991 to 1999. “I want other Tribal members to know I will provide attention to de- tail, customer service and a sense of community,” he said. “Farmers isn’t the cheapest, but you will have a local guy who will answer the phone and can meet your needs.” He gave an example of Farmers claim turnaround times as a way in which the company excels, even though their prices are not as low as some other insurance providers. “My brother’s house burnt down in Detroit during the fires last year and he was reimbursed for the value within eight days,” Law- rence said. “The biggest part about serving people is promptly getting back to them and getting them what they need. You can’t go wrong from there.” In his spare time, Lawrence en- joys playing pickle ball, golfing and “everything outdoors.” He has a wife, Kristie, and two children, Tribal members Rylie, 24, and Davis, 20. Lawrence also served as the Tribe’s Hatfield Fellow in 2011-12, working in Rep. Suzanne Bonami- ci’s office. Lawrence’s office is located at 4985 Battle Creek Road S.E., Suite 102, and he can be reached at 503- 399-1077 or dlawrence1@farmer- sagent.com. Machines would alter competitive landscape MACHINES continued from front page Prineville, Tillamook and Burns that the lost revenue will increase to $62 million for the Oregon Lottery and $31 million for Tribes. In addi- tion, if the machines expand into the 11 off-track betting locations operated throughout Oregon by Grants Pass Downs at 250 machines per site, the losses could increase to $174 million for the Oregon Lottery and $86 million for Tribes. “In the first scenario, Tribal income would fall approximately 5 percent,” the ECONorthwest study states. “In the second, where machines appear at all racetracks in the state, the amount Oregon Tribes earn from gaming and use to pay for necessary Tribal services would fall about 23 percent. With the third scenario, the loss would be 72 percent.” Historic racing machines are electronic gaming devices whose outcomes are predicated on pa- ri-mutuel wagering – when the public bets on a race. After a play- er places a wager and presses a button, a video showing the last few seconds of a race that occurred previously is displayed and prizes in the pari-mutuel pool are dis- played as the winning slot machine outcomes. “For all intents and purposes, an HHR is a video slot machine,” the ECONorthwest study states. “Gamblers insert money, select an amount to bet, press a button and watch a brief animated display. Once the display stops, the gambler learns if they won or lost their bet.” “All of a sudden it’s like, has the state’s prohi- bition on casinos been waived. We played under one set of rules. We invested in our facilities in rural Oregon on those rules. And now it looks like the rules are changing.” ~ Grand Ronde Tribal lobbyist Justin Martin The machines were originally introduced into Oregon at Portland Meadows Racetrack, which closed in 2019 and was subsequently demolished. The machines did not have a significant impact, according to the C3 study, because of the lim- ited library of game titles, lacklus- ter facility where they were housed and general decline in interest in horse racing. However, historic racing ma- chines have undergone “significant” improvements in design, technolo- gy and marketing appeal, C3 states, and points to their introduction into gaming markets in the Midwest to bolster its contention that they will negatively affect Tribal casino and Oregon Lottery revenues. For instance, when the new his- toric racing machines were in- stalled at Derby City Gaming in Louisville, Ky., in 2018, the nearby Caesars Southern Indiana casino saw a 12 percent decline in annual net slot revenue. When 902 of the machines were installed at Red Mile Gaming & Racing in Lexington, Ky., the Bel- terra Casino Resort 90 minutes away saw a 7 percent decrease in net slot revenue over a 10-month period. In addition to Kentucky, the new- est generation of historic racing ma- chines can be found in Wyoming and Virginia and are about to enter the gaming market in New Hampshire. “Given the number of racetracks and OTB facilities in Oregon, the introduction of these new HHR machines will alter the competitive landscape, and they are expected to cannibalize gaming revenue from the Oregon Lottery and Oregon Tribal casinos,” the C3 study states. “What policy makers must ask is do they want an expansion of gaming in the state and, if so, how will this increase in supply impact existing (Oregon Lottery) operations and Tribal casinos.” Boersma offered a study that esti- mates Grants Pass Downs and the Flying Lark would generate more than $10.7 billion in spending in southern Oregon over 30 years of operation. The threat of historic racing ma- chines to Tribal casino revenues convinced the Seminole Tribe in Florida to support a number of recent referendums in the state that gave voters and not legislators the right to decide on expansion of gaming. In addition, when the Tribe renegotiated its compact with the state of Florida, it was able to introduce language that essentially prohibits any historic racing ma- chine manufactured over the past 15 years. “Clearly, the Seminole Tribe of Florida recognized that modern HHR machines offer an electronic gaming experience that is very similar to the Class III machines that the Tribe offers,” the C3 study states. “To prevent any possible erosion of market share, it insisted on language that all but eliminated the gaming entertainment experi- ence of modern HHR machines.” Ultimately, the ECONorthwest study concludes, if Grants Pass Downs and the Flying Lark are unable to increase the number of gamblers and the amount Orego- nians gamble, the money it earns from historic racing machines will come at the expense of the Oregon Lottery and Tribes. “All of a sudden it’s like, has the state’s prohibition on casinos been waived,” Grand Ronde Tribal lobbyist Justin Martin was quoted as saying in The Oregonian. “We played under one set of rules. We invested in our facilities in rural Oregon on those rules. And now it looks like the rules are changing.” Other Tribal leaders who signed both letters were Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Chairwoman Debbie Bossley, Siletz Chairwoman Delores Pigsley, Klamath Chair- man Donald Gentry, Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Indians Chair- man Dan Courtney and Umatilla Chairwoman Kathryn Brigham. In addition to Brown, the letter was sent to Oregon Senate Presi- dent Peter Courtney and Speaker of the House Tina Kotek.
