The Saga of Casino Gambling in Massachusetts

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Title: The Saga of Casino Gambling in Massachusetts Abstract: Tip O’Neill, a famous Massachusetts politician, coined the adage, “All politics are local.” When the advocates of casino gambling ignored O’Neill’s sage advice, they soon put their goal of bringing casino gambling to Massachusetts into jeopardy. The history of Massachusetts casino gambling will be divided into three “eras.” Hopefully, the lessons learned in trying to bring casino gambling to Massachusetts will forecast the difficulties in advocating other forms of gambling in the future. Era I: 1994- 2009 (Catching up with the Neighbors) With the success of the Native American casinos in Connecticut, the Republican governors of this era were searching for ways to introduce casino gambling as a revenue source. However, the primary opponents of any casino expansion were the Democratic mayors of the 351 towns and cities. They were afraid that casinos would cut into state lottery revenue which went to towns and cities. Era II: 2010 -2015 (The Great Compromise) Much as it took a Republican President, Richard Nixon, to recognize Communist China, it required a Democratic Governor, Deval Patrick to gain approval for casino gambling. The bill required an effort worthy of Henry Clay. There were to be three casinos. One in the western part of the state, one in the Boston area and a Native American casino in the Southeast part of the state. Revenues were to be shared between the state and cities. Era III: 2016 to the present (Dividing the Spoils) Suffolk Downs in East Boston was the initial favorite to obtain the Boston casino license however, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission denied its application in one of the greatest upset in Massachusetts history. When the Wynn Corporation won the Boston area license for Everett, a bitter struggle between Boston’s mayor, Marty Walsh and the Wynn Corporation over casino revenue and which communities would receive the most benefits. The Wynn Corporation eventually won this battle but the troubles that beset Steve Wynn once again made the Boston license a controversial issue. The final verdict has yet to be determined but the outcome does show how nebulous gambling’s future could be not only in Massachusetts but in many other jurisdictions. .

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