Massachusetts Following Kansas Errors in Casino Gambling Delays
Despite the state's top officials all agreeing casino gambling is needed, Massachusetts may still be as much as three years away from the actual operation of casinos, if they ever arrive. State Representative Brian Dempsey told the Eagle-Tribune that his House committee is preparing a casino bill, but it will be three years or more before implementation.
Governor Deval Patrick, Senate President Therese Murray, and Speaker Robert DeLeo all have said expanded gambling is on its way, and both Murray and DeLeo assured voters casinos could be legalized by the end of the year. But Dempsey says legislators want to move slowly and cautiously to ensure the best possible impact for the state.
Kansas regulators had similar concerns. When permission to license casinos in that state was given to the state lottery board, an application and review process was developed that seemed interminable. Ten applicants to operate Kansas casinos went through months of intense scrutiny, only to all advance to another level of review.
But,as months passed, Kansas circumstances changed. Fast-acting tribes in Oklahoma erected and opened casinos on Kansas borders while the debate on which offers to take raged on among lottery officials. Recession changed the economy, and companies offering huge deals to Kansas found themselves far less interested, leaving the state facing a shadow of the jobs and revenue it once envisioned following casino licensing.
Massachusetts may face similar problems, if delay is not kept to a minimum. The Connecticut tribal casinos are looking for ways to buttress their businesses against potential competition from Massachusetts gambling. Tribes in the state are seeking to operate their own casinos, as well. Some regulation of online gambling over the next year is certain to affect in-state demand.
While gaming companies will push and shove right now to get a piece of the Massachusetts casino market, it was once that way in Kansas as well. Bay State lawmakers may do well to remember the millions of annual revenue lost by Kansas officials taking their time.
