NEW BUFFALO — Nearly six months after the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians began withholding $5.7 million in payments to local governments and schools, some Berrien County leaders say they've come up with a compromise solution. Others aren't so sure it's a legal move.

In November, the Pokagon Band placed the first payment to local governments and school districts in an escrow account because of arguments over who should get what, and legal questions over the composition and development of Berrien County's Local Revenue Sharing Board.

That board was set up to oversee payments and distributions of 2 percent of electronic gaming revenue from New Buffalo's Four Winds Casino. According to the Michigan Gaming Control Board, the amount withheld from that first payment is $977,266.

That's far more than first projected. Because of the boost in revenue, Berrien County's Local Revenue Sharing Board decided Monday to "share" the wealth by changing their bylaws to allow three new villages to get a small portion of the money earmarked for public safety.

The board also voted to cap the amount earmarked for public safety funding, and divert the excess funding into a grant fund designed to help local governments deal with the impact from the casino.

The Local Revenue Sharing Board, or LRSB, is made up of two permanent members, Berrien County and New Buffalo Township, and a revolving member, voted on by the two permanent members. Currently, that third member is the New Buffalo School District.

Berrien County's appointed member of the LRSB is County Commissioner Larry Clymer, who calls the bylaw changes "minor."

"The intent hasn't changed at all," he said. "[It's] just some word-smithing, basically."

The LRSB's other appointed member, New Buffalo Township Clerk Rolland Oselka, says and the revisions will fix problems that have been holding up the distribution of all the money.

"It addresses a lot of the concerns the local units had," Oselka said. "These suggestions were provided by them."

But New Buffalo's school board calls the changes something else: potentially illegal.

"Any approval of the bylaws as they now exist might very well be a violation of the Michigan constitution," said New Buffalo Schools Superintendent Dr. Michael Lindley. "In the formula, certain monies are gifted to us. And we would be, in essence, re-gifting in violation of the Michigan constitution. It might not necessarily be illegal for [the other members of the LRSB] but it could be for us."

So, late last week, Lindley and the school board notified the LRSB of its intent to resign its seat on the board.

But Clymer says, it's not a done deal.

"Until we receive official notification, meaning a dated resolution and who agrees or disagrees with it, we can't accept their resignation," he said.

Lindley says that notification should only be a few days away, and because of that, the LRSB has decided to begin accepting applications from other governmental entities who want to become a voting member of the board.

That announcement is big news for the city of New Buffalo. Many, including Mayor Bob Westergren, have pushed for a voice on the board since it was formed. They say the city will see the most impact, and thus, it should get the most money.

Mayor Westergren was unavailable for comment Monday, and his staff, including the city manager, refused to speculate about whether the city would submit an application since they had just learned of the potentially vacant seat.

But as the debate on how to spend the money continues, there is one nagging unresolved issue: so far, there is no money to spend.

The question still on everyone's minds, remains the same.

"Will the state and Tribe recognize this and release the money?" wonder Dr. Lindley.

Even after six months rolling the dice over and over, it seems only time will tell.

Michigan's Gaming Control Board wrote a letter to Attorney General Mike Cox last week, asking him to step in and resolve the dispute before the Pokagon Band's second payment is due on May 31.

The Local Revenue Sharing Board will meet again on May 12 to decide who the new revolving member will be.