...it now looks as if pro casino advocates have the momentum they need to get the legislature to draw up new legislation on bringing slot machines to the Bay State.
 
Boy, have things changed in less than a year. It was only last April 5 the state’s House of Representatives overwhelmingly voted down by a margin of 110-55 an initiative to bring 8,000 slot machines to the state’s four racetracks. The Senate had approved the measure before it was shot down by the House. Former Governor Mitt Romney was opposed to legalizing as well.
 
But now, newly elected Governor Deval Patrick seems to be primed to consider legalized gaming a way to add much needed revenue to the tax coffers. The Governor will be meeting with both gaming advocates and opponents and supporters and will make a definitive decision in March, according to a report given to www.onlinecasinocrawler.com by Susquehanna Financial Group, an affiliate of Susquehanna International Group (SIG).
 
“The governor's pro-gaming stance is somewhat surprising because he has historically been seen as anti-gaming. This could be a state to watch as there has been recent support for slots at the state's four racetracks. The issue could gain momentum as the threat of a definite veto from former Governor Romney is gone,” says the report. “We believe that stand alone casinos are a long shot in the state. However, we believe that slots at tracks could gain momentum this year.”
 
Part of the reason SIG and others are now bullish on the possibility of casino gaming being allowed in Massachusetts is a new survey that was released Monday that shows the majority of citizens approve of authorizing a resort casino.
 
According to the poll conducted by the Center for Policy Analysis at the University of  Massachusetts Dartmouth, 57 percent of respondents support the authorization of a resort casino, 30 percent are opposed and 14 percent are undecided.
 
"Massachusetts residents have a sophisticated understanding that there are two distinct, separate components to southern New England's gambling market; Destination casinos like Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun, and convenience gambling facilities like Lincoln Park and Newport Grand," said Clyde W. Barrow, the CFPA's director, in a statement referring to Conencticut and Rhode Island casinos . "They believe the commonwealth should approve a casino as a way to recapture Massachusetts monies being spent at Foxwoods, Mohegan Sun, and throughout southeastern Connecticut's restaurant, hospitality and tourism economies, to create jobs, and to stimulate local economic development in targeted areas, as has happened in southeastern Connecticut."
 
In addition, residents polled believe the financial benefits associated with casinos outweigh the possibility of negative social ramifications. In fact 76 percent believe a casino will generate new tax revenues for the state, 69 percent believing it will create more jobs for residents and 67 percent believe it will drive tourism. Survey respondents, 62 percent, think that if a casino was built the state can capture some of the business that is currently going to out of state casinos.  Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun are the two largest casino resorts in the world in terms of casino floor space and are two of the most successful ones in the world.

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Barrow said that $1.1 billion a year is currently leaving gamblers pockets in Connecticut who are Massachusetts residents.
 
"I think most people realize that people are (gambling) anyway, just not in Massachusetts. If we can create jobs and create revenue then we're crazy not to do it," said Sen. Steven Panagiotakos, D-Lowell, vice chairman of the Senate Ways and Means Committee.

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