Who is a member?
Our members are the local governments of Massachusetts and their elected and appointed leadership.
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission has extended the timeline for awarding the Region A (greater Boston) resort casino license, but has not specified a date.
The award had been anticipated by the end of the fiscal year (June 30), but is now anticipated several months later.
The delay comes as the Gaming Commission considers the premises of the gaming establishments proposed by Mohegan Sun in Revere and Wynn in Everett, with the city of Boston asserting that it is a host community to both projects. A hearing to further consider the issue is scheduled for May 1.
At the same time, the sole applicant for the Region B (western Massachusetts) resort-casino license, MGM, has requested that the Gaming Commission award the license in that region by June 30 as planned. But MGM asked the commission to delay the required payment of the $85 million licensing fee until a possible ballot initiative intended to repeal the state’s casino gaming law has been settled, either in court or by the voters in November.
The state budget for the current fiscal year relies upon the licensing fees totaling $195 million from one slots parlor and two resort casinos. The slots-parlor license recipient, Penn National, paid its $25 million licensing fee to the state in March.
In Region C (southeastern Massachusetts), the Gaming Commission voted to allow expanded infrastructure costs to be included in the $500 million minimum capital investment required of proposed commercial casino projects. The commission is considering delaying the deadline for the region’s Phase II commercial application, with a final decision expected in the coming weeks.
The commission is in the midst of a parallel Region C application process for a commercial resort-casino in the region, while a prospective tribal casino in the region works through federal issues.