Massachusetts: House, Senate to vote on gambling bill today

Which means they won't read the bill before voting on it.

House, Senate to vote on gambling bill today
KYLE CHENEY and MATT MURPHY
State House News Service The Salem News

BOSTON — House and Senate negotiators agreed to a pact Monday that sets the stage for final approval of legislation to bring three casinos and a slots-only facility to Massachusetts.

The bill, which is expected to easily clear both branches of the Legislature, could reach Gov. Deval Patrick's desk as early as Tuesday afternoon, and Patrick has indicated he supports the broad framework of the bill. If lawmakers pass the plan this week, Patrick would then have 10 days to sign, amend or veto it.

Rep. Joseph Wagner, the co-chairman of the Economic Development Committee and the lead House conferee on the bill, said that backers of the plan don't expect casinos to be operational for three to four years after the expected passage of the proposal.

"I think it's a good bill. I think last year's bill was a good bill [which means he didn't read it] , and we have made improvements on that in different areas. If you hold this to the light of day and against laws in other states that do casino gambling, this is a good bill," Wagner said Monday night after the 150-page, 115-section bill had been filed with the House clerk.

Under the compromise bill - negotiated by a six-member panel of lawmakers charged by legislative leaders with forging consensus between House and Senate versions - lawmakers, municipal officials and county workers who vote on or administer gambling policy would be barred from working in the casino industry for a year after they leave office.

That plan, endorsed by the Senate, had initially been cast aside by the House, and the House and Senate's lead negotiators, Wagner (D-Chicopee) and Sen. Stanley Rosenberg (D-Amherst), have expressed reservations about the policy. Wagner, however, said last night that the one-year "cooling-off" period was a "reasonable solution" to an issue that, in his opinion, could have little impact.

"I understand symbolically how important that appeared to some," Wagner told the News Service. " That said, these facilities aren't going to come online for a period of four years, give or take, so as a practical matter a one-year cooling off period I don't think means a great deal."

The final proposal also eliminates a Senate plan that would have permitted bars and restaurants to offer free or discounted drinks to patrons, within the bounds of regulations established by the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission. Instead, the ABCC would be charged with studying all alcoholic beverage regulations for two years.

In Boston, Worcester and Springfield, approval of the siting of a casino would be left to the voters in the potential host ward, although city officials would have the option to open a citywide vote.

The final bill also scrapped a House plan that would have counted gambling revenue toward calculations that determine whether Bay State residents are in line for an income tax reduction.

The compromise proposal won the support of all four Democrats and one of the two Republicans negotiating a deal, including Wagner, Rosenberg, Rep. Brian Dempsey (D-Haverhill) and Sens. Jennifer Flanagan (D-Leominster) and Richard Ross (R-Wrentham). Only Rep. Paul Frost (R-Auburn) withheld his signature from the proposal. He could not immediately be reached for comment.

Backers of the casino legislation cite the potential to create thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars in annual revenue. Critics say it will cause irreparable harm to the character of the state, stoke addiction and increase crime and corruption.

Passage of a casino bill would bring resolution to an issue that has been on the Beacon Hill agenda for decades. The issue appeared resolved last year when lawmakers sent Gov. Deval Patrick a plan to introduce three casinos and two slot parlors - specifically marked for the state's racetracks - but talks disintegrated over Patrick's opposition to approving what he called "no-bid contracts" for track owners. The bill died when Patrick returned it with an amendment but lawmakers had already concluded formal business for the year.

"In view of what happened at the end of last session, we were clear we could not afford a repeat of that and took a good deal of care and deliberation trying to understand what might or might not be acceptable to him," Wagner said of the governor.

Under the bill, oversight of the new gambling industry would fall to a new five-member gambling commission, whose members would be appointed by the governor, the treasurer and the attorney general. The commission would be responsible for vetting casino applicants to operate casinos around the state, for collecting taxes from gambling facilities and for ensuring that gambling operators comply with the law.

The bill divides the state into three regions that would each be eligible to host a single casino: an eastern region that includes Boston and extends to Worcester, a southeastern region that includes Plymouth County, Bristol County, Cape Cod and the islands, and a western region that includes the four counties west of Worcester.

Bidders, including the Mohegan tribe, Caesars Entertainment and Wynn Resorts have already begun lining up to obtain licenses, should they become available. The Mashpee Wampanoag tribe is also eyeing a bid for the southeastern license. Under the bill, Gov. Patrick would have until July 31, 2012 to negotiate a compact with tribes seeking a license before opening the process to other bidders.

Successful bidders would pay $85 million to obtain a casino license and guarantee a minimum $500 million capital investment, or $25 million to obtain a slots-only license with a minimum $125 million investment. Daily revenue at casinos would be taxed at 25 percent, and the slots facility would pay 49 percent in taxes on revenue.

The plan apportions revenue from licenses and taxes to local aid, higher education, health care payment reform, transportation, public health, racehorse development, mitigation for host and surrounding communities, tourism and anti-addiction programs.