Massachusetts passes landmark Casino bill

Massachusetts has toyed with the idea of opening up to casinos since 2008, and on Tuesday the idea finally became a reality when Governor Deval Patrick signed a bill that had already passed the Massachusetts House and Senate. The bill will allow up to three resort-style casinos in the Commonwealth -one in the southeast region, one in the Boston/Worcester area, and one in western Massachusetts-as well as a lone slots parlor license.

A similar bill was vetoed in 2010 by the Governor, who was unhappy with the three slot parlor licenses that would be available (and only two casino licenses) since slot parlors do not create the same number of jobs that a resort-style casino provides. Patrick has been pushing for casinos since being elected Governor, and after signing the bill on Tuesday said, “It’s not the solution to every economic challenge we face and it won’t be the cause of every social ill that we in the commonwealth together have to deal with,”

The bill also oversees the creation of an exploratory committee that will look into the feasibility of online poker legislation passing in the state. The inclusion of this online poker legislation quickly puts Massachusetts into the forefront of online poker legislation.

Now the debate will turn to where the casinos will be placed, with early frontrunners being Milford (casino developer David Nunes has been working with local politicians for years to develop a casino just off of Interstate 495), Palmer (a sleepy town in western Mass where the Mohegan Sun corporation owns a sizable amount of land), and Middleborough (where local Indians have been given assurances they will receive a license so long as they meet the proposed criteria), but there are upwards of 10 possible locations that are vying for one of the three available licenses.

In order to be considered for a license a land developer must not only pass a vetting process, but also must fork-over a hefty $85 million licensing fee to the state, and incest at least $500 million in the proposed property (including infrastructure improvements). A full 25% of the casinos revenue will be handed over to the state coffers in the form of taxes, with the slots-parlor paying 49% of revenue in taxes.

A five-member commission will be set-up by Patrick, Attorney General Martha Coakley, and State Treasurer Steve Grossman to vet the potential licensees for the casino and slot parlor concessions.