Massachusetts residents in favor of gambling expansion bill

The pro-gambling expansion lawmakers must have done a good job expressing their bullet points, because a majority of residents are in favor of a new bill that has passed the House last week. The bill would bring casino resorts to Massachusetts, along with thousands of jobs.

A new survey conducted by UMass Dartmouth indicates that fifty-six percent of Massachusetts residents approve of the gaming bill. Only thirty-one percent were opposed, and thirteen percent still do not have an opinion on the issue. The promise of jobs seems to be the overwhelming reason why the gambling expansion will be accepted.

"We have way too many people unemployed since the recession," said Margaret Beacher. "Any legislation that would guarantee thousands of jobs I would be in favor of at this point. In addition to that, all the other states around us have casinos, so why shouldn't we?"

Indeed, Beacher was correct in her assessment of the casino gambling industry in the Northeast. Maryland, New York, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Maine have all added new gaming facilities within the past several years. Although Massachusetts will be the last into the market, that does not mean they will struggle for gaming revenue.

When lawmakers started discussing the possibility of casino resorts, research was done that showed hundreds of millions of dollars leaving the state for gambling. Massachusetts residents have had to travel to Connecticut to gamble for the past decade, and that may be another reason a majority are in favor of the new gaming proposal.

Governor Deval Patrick has been pushing destination casino resorts since he ran his campaign for office. His first couple of attempts failed, but he, House Speaker Robert DeLeo, and Senate President Therese Murray spent this past summer ironing out a new bill that was satisfactory to all parties involved.

The bill has already passed the House, and Murray expects that the Senate will vote on the legislation in the coming weeks. With the public behind the bill, Murray believes it will pass in the Senate. Currently, senators are debating the bill, and offering up possible tweaks they may want included.