Nevada casino officials, slot machine manufacturers and state regulators puzzled Wednesday over California Gov.-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger's stance on Indian gambling -- and the potential effect on the gambling industry in general.

"Some see Schwarzenegger's election as an opportunity, some see it as a threat," said Bill Bible, head of the Nevada Resort Association, which represents many of the state's casinos. "It depends on where your position is in the industry." "I don't think anybody knows," added Thomas Baker, head of slot-making giant International Game Technology. "I think (the impact) is yet to be determined."

Dennis Neilander, chairman of the state Gaming Control Board, said he expects Schwarzenegger will start with an assessment of Indian gambling in California and the numbers of slot machines they should be allowed -- a process that wasn't finished by recalled Gov. Gray Davis' administration by a deadline last March. "He'll have to decide whether to expand or contract (the slot numbers," Neilander said. "And we'll have to wait and see what his position is on the issue."

"If the Indian casinos expand, that could cause some economic harm to smaller communities in Nevada," Neilander said. "On the other hand, it could help slot machine manufacturers." Nevada companies that have agreements with tribes to operate casinos in California also could benefit.

Schwarzenegger's campaign statements on gambling reflect a harsher stance toward the tribes than that of Davis. In a late-September ad, he accused the tribes of playing "money politics" in Sacramento and making billions without paying their fair share.