Massachusetts Legislators Promise New Casino Bill

**Moderator**

Massachusetts Legislators Promise New Casino Bill
by No Luck Needed member ttwna2k for NoLuckNeeded.com

16 Apr, 2009 / GamblingCompliance Ltd. / Dan Townend

An expansion of the gambling industry in Massachusetts looks certain after three of the state’s most senior politicians agreed to support a new bill before the end of the year.
The move comes after figures revealed the state has been forced to cut $3bn dollars from its current budget.

Now Senate President Therese Murray, House Speaker Robert DeLeo and Governor Deval Patrick have agreed to pass some sort of gambling-expansion bill in the autumn.

Possible gaming developments could include major resort-casinos, more slot machines at race tracks or the auction of slot parlours licences.

Recent studies suggest Massachusetts residents spent more than $700m at casinos in neighbouring Connecticut alone in 2008.

President Murray - who pulled an imaginary slot machine arm and proclaimed “cha-ching” as she spoke at a breakfast business meeting in Boston - said that she, Speaker DeLeo and Gov Patrick had reached an agreement after discussions.

“We are all of the belief that we will do a gaming bill and there will be a gaming bill in the fall,” Murray said.

“To see that more than $900m leaves the commonwealth annually and goes to Connecticut and Rhode Island for gaming, I think even if we could pick up $700m of that we would take it.

“We need the revenue. We’re going to take our time, build this in a proper way with a full debate and decide which part of the state it should go into.

“But we’re facing a $4bn deficit for 2010 and we are still not out of ’09. We still have to pay another $500m for this year with furloughs, cuts and layoffs. For next year, we have to be creative so if we can get a gaming bill through it would give us revenue in 2011.

“My staff is going to hate me for doing this, but - cha-ching.”

Senator Stanley Rosenberg who will work on the plans said he thought that creating resort-style casinos would result in longer-lasting economic development than slot machine parlors.

He suggested that one short-term solution may be to create a hybrid system in which casino developers are given short-term slot parlour licenses while they build proper resorts.

Governor Patrick put forward a casino gambling bill in 2008, which was supported by Murray. However, it was thwarted by then-House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi. DiMasi has since resigned and been replaced by DeLeo, a Democrat whose district includes the Wonderland and Suffolk Downs race tracks and who supports expanded gambling.

Last month Treasurer Timothy Cahill started the process of reviving gambling legislation in the state with a proposal to auction licenses for slot parlours.

Governor Patrick said: “There is interest among the leadership in having the conversation. I think it will come later in the year.”

Speaker DeLeo said “later on this session there will be a debate on gaming.”

“I’ve been a supporter of slots, and as I’ve told the governor before I’m open to a discussion relative to casinos,” he told the Boston Globe. “It’s obviously a very controversial subject matter and we have to try to get it as right as we can the very first time out of the box.”

He added that gambling would not cure all the state’s financial issues but that he “looked at it as one revenue source we can tap into as a commonwealth”.

The proposal has not been met by universal support however.

Senator Sue Tucker said: “The fact is we can’t gamble our way to fiscal stability. Gambling has not solved budget problems in a single state, and it won’t solve ours.”

However, with the state like many facing budget cuts because of steep falls in revenue from taxes, many politicians feel they have little option.

Massachusetts has cut up to $3bn from its current budget, and maybe $3.5bn from the budget that begins on July 1. Patrick announced $156m budget cuts last week, the third round of cuts he has been forced to make this fiscal year.

He has previously estimated that resort casinos could create 20,000 permanent jobs, $600m in licensing fees and $400m in annual tax revenue – although any changes in gambling legislation are unlikely to bring in extra tax revenue until the 2011 tax year.