The Seminole Tribe's head of gambling on Tuesday delivered a blunt, public message to the Florida Legislature:

You can allow unlimited gambling statewide, or you can have our $150 million a year.

But you won't get both.

James F. Allen, the Seminoles' chief executive officer of gaming operations, spoke candidly about the failure of the Legislature, governor and the tribe to agree on a gambling compact.

Under federal law, the tribe is entitled to Las Vegas-style slot machines at its casinos because they are allowed at South Florida parimutuels. But for the state to get any revenue-sharing from the profits, it must enter into a compact with the tribe and give the tribe something the competing casinos don't have.

LACK OF PROGRESS

Appearing at the Florida Gaming Summit at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino near Hollywood, Allen decried the lack of progress on a compact out of Tallahassee.

``It's gone on too long, and what's been going on is not in the tribe's best interests,'' Allen said.

At issue: how to allow for the continued growth of parimutuels -- which, in Miami-Dade County, now includes slot machines at Flagler -- without creating an environment that squeezes out the Seminoles.

The tribe's leverage: As a sovereign nation, it can't be taxed by the state or federal government, so if the state wants a cut of its profits it has to give up something in return.

That has been narrowly interpreted by the Florida Legislature in a bill signed into law last summer. Legislators agreed to give the tribe blackjack, baccarat and chemin de fer in addition to slot machines at its casinos in Broward and Hillsborough counties, but restricted gaming to slot machines at its four other casinos.

Gov. Charlie Crist and the tribe agreed to most but not all of the Legislature's requirements, including paying the state a minimum of $150 million a year for the next 20 years. But it rejected a provision that would allow the Legislature to expand gambling elsewhere in the state, so long as it was outside a 100-mile radius of existing parimutuels.

The Legislature must sign on to the pact and the House's lead negotiator on the gambling issue, Rep. Bill Galvano, has declared that the deal worked out by Crist is unacceptable.

Crist said this week that the Legislature could ratify the compact during a special legislative session in December. If that doesn't happen, the issue will not be taken up until the March regular session.

This is the second compact Crist has signed with the tribe. The first was thrown out by the Florida Supreme Court because the governor failed to get the Legislature's approval.

Rep. Jim Waldman, a Coconut Creek Democrat and compact supporter, said he thinks it is ``unfortunate'' that legislative leaders have not met with the Seminoles to work out their differences, even though by law they are not required to be a party to the agreement.

``The Legislature really needs to wake up to that's the way you negotiate,'' Waldman said. ``You don't negotiate without a critical party in the room.''

Several complex dynamics are in play, including the unwillingness by some across the state to expand gambling at all, the desire by others to allow up to two dozen additional gambling sites across the state -- including possibly at Miami Beach's Fontainebleau -- and Tallahassee's need to make up for plummeting tax revenues.

Legislators also tied the fate of the parimutuels to the compact, giving them a 15 percent break on their 50 percent tax rate if the compact becomes law.

The Seminoles, working under their previous agreement with Crist that allowed for table games in certain locations, went ahead with expansion plans.

Last year, the Hard Rock made available table games, which haven't been nearly as lucrative as some might suggest, Allen said.

``It has obviously helped from a marketing standpoint, because you become more credible as a real casino,'' Allen said. ``But when you look at what we make on table games and the amount of money we're paying to the state, it's almost a wash.''

FURTHER EXPANSION

The tribe has plans to expand further, hoping to add hotel rooms to its Hollywood and Tampa locations and build up its property in Coconut Creek.

But the uncertainty surrounding the compact has made it all but impossible to project the tribe's bottom line going forward.

``If you look long-term, 10, 15, 20 years down the road, it obviously would diminish the possibility of expanding the tribe's gaming operation,'' Allen said.

Miami Herald staff writer Mary Ellen Klas contributed to this report.

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