"By effectively foreclosing the possibility of a major expansion of the Lyttons San Pablo casino, this legislation ensures that a major Nevada-style casino will not be built in the Bay Area in the near future."

An agreement announced Thursday would effectively block the possibility of an Indian casino expanding into a vast Las Vegas-style gambling center.

Under the deal contained in legislation introduced by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians could continue to operate several hundred electronic bingo machines and poker games at its 70,000-square-foot casino in San Pablo.

Under the new deal, if the tribe sought to expand to so-called "Class III" gambling, such as slot machines, craps or "banked" card games such as blackjack and baccarat, it would be required to go through a rigorous federal process required of tribes that want to open casinos on newly acquired land. Read more