By
Cat Viglienzoni - July 23, 2010
As the impasse continues between the Massachusetts House
and Senate over the extent of gambling in the state, a top negotiator says the
bill could still get done before the end of the month. But time is ticking on
the bill as the legislative session draws to a close at the end of the month.
The bill must be completed and voted on in both branches
before the legislative session ends at midnight on July 31. If it is not, it will
have to wait until the next session for passage. Points of debate include
whether to have slots at racetracks and how many resort-style casinos to allow.
Senate president pro tem and chair of the conference
committee on the gambling bill Stan Rosenberg said in an interview with WERS
News they are still in the negotiation stage.
"Proposals have been exchanged for the last several hours
back and forth. We had an excellent discussion this morning, leaving everyone
feeling very optimistic as we left the meeting," he said.
He said he talked to the house chairman for several hours
Thursday night and for an hour and a half this morning with the whole conference
committee. Though Rosenberg said he cannot divulge the content until it's
complete and the committee members have voted, he said he hopes they can maximize jobs
and revenue in whatever they do.
"We're hoping that we'll put in place a structure that
will allow for the development of a very robust and secure gaming market in Massachusetts
that will be able to compete effectively against places like Foxwoods and
Mohegan Sun," he said.
Rosenberg said the gambling bill would produce about
15,000 jobs and $350 million in state revenue, as well as bring Massachusetts players
who are spending a billion dollars out-of-state in Rhode Island, Connecticut
and New York back into the state.
But opponents of the bill hope the stalling means the
bill won't make it into the legislature before the end of the session. They say
the bill to bring gaming to the state will also bring hidden economic and
social costs. Others say the continued focus on the gambling bill detracts from
other issues that must try to face a vote before the end of the month, such as health-care
cost reform, an economic development stimulus bill and criminal record reform.
A group of senators against gambling met with some of Governor Deval Patrick's
aides to make the case that special interests are shaping the gambling debate.
The governor opposes slots at racetracks but has said his
disapproval isn't serious enough to threaten the legislature with a veto yet.
The governor and others who oppose slots at racetracks say they don't lead to
bid contracts and they will not bring as much economic development benefit to
the state. The governor has also expressed concern that the gambling debate is
taking up too much of the legislature's time.
(Photo
courtesy: AP Images)
