Archives » State Issues
De Francis Says He'd Forgo %
I can't believe the Bug Boys didn't jump on this story: Ace reporter John Scheinman reports in the Washington Post today that outgoing Maryland Jockey Club executive Joe De Francis would relinquish his rights to slot machine profits if it would help gaming legislation pass in the state legislature: "Sure, absolutely," De Francis said. "I can't speak for my partners, but I can speak for me. In order for [the Maryland racetracks] to be viable, the playing field has got to be leveled and slots have to come to Maryland to allow the Maryland Jockey Club to be competitive with...
Posted by JC, Sep 25, 2007 09:00 PM
DiMasi Cashes In?
The Boston Globe picks up today on the story, reported by the Boston Herald yesterday, that Massachusetts House speaker Sal DiMasi has accepted nearly $4,000 in donations from gaming lobbyists and companies such as Harrah's and GTech since 2002, including $500 from Harrah's CEO Gary Loveman. Bay state slots supporters blame DiMasi for killing slots legislation just a couple of weeks ago with his statements about the "social cost" of gaming and apparent lack of concern for the state's racing industry, and the Herald insinuates in a follow-up article that the contributions from Harrah's and other out-of-state gaming companies, fearful...
Posted by JC, Apr 21, 2006 03:45 PM
Mass. Slots Bill Rejected
After hours of contentious debate, the Massachusetts House dealt a devastating blow to the state's racing industry on Wednesday evening, voting 100-55 to kill a bill allowing the installation of 2,000 slot machines at each of the state's four racetracks. "The Massachusetts House of Representatives is killing the industry,” said representative David Flynn. "We're strangling the tracks." The debate on the bill, which was passed by the Senate last fall, lasted for nearly six hours, as several legislators on both sides of the issue addressed the chamber, including representative Dan Bosley, a longtime expanded gaming opponent, and representative Kathi-Anne Reinstein,...
Posted by JC, Apr 5, 2006 08:45 PM
Simulcasting Expires
Because state lawmakers couldn't agree on how long to extend the Massachusetts simulcasting law and track owners couldn't agree on the number of races each was allowed to show, the legislature adjourned Friday without renewing the simulcasting law, which means simulcasting expired in the state at midnight Friday. Up to 80 employees may be laid off from Suffolk Downs, which will be closed at least through Monday, and Massachusetts racing fans won't be able to bet on Saturday's Florida Derby at either Suffolk or Plainridge. Slots and simulcasting are closely linked in the state right now, and some slots supporters...
Posted by JC, Mar 31, 2006 11:00 PM
Mass. Slots Watch
With April 5 set as the date for the Massachusetts House to debate a slots bill passed by the Senate last fall, both sides are advocating their positions with increasing vigor. The New England HBPA and the track employees' union took out a quarter-page ad on the Boston Globe editorial page this morning (click the image to view the ad in full) that iterates the argument that gambling money leaving the Commonwealth now could be recaptured, while House speaker Sal DiMasi has officially come out as a slots opponent. The Boston Herald reports that the speaker's "top lieutenants" are pressuring...
Posted by JC, Mar 29, 2006 09:30 AM
Mass. Slots Watch
More than 100 racetrack employees, horse owners, and local politicians rallied in front of the Massachusetts State House on Monday in support of a bill passed by the Senate last fall that allows up to 2,000 slot machines to be installed at each of the state's four racetracks and which has languished in the House since. Legislators are meeting today to set a date "to formally debate" the bill, which was to have been voted on in March according to an agreement made last December. It's now expected that the legislature will take action on April 5, a delay that's...
Posted by JC, Mar 22, 2006 10:05 AM
Mass. Voters Back Slots
Massachusetts racetrack owners could get the slots they wish for this spring. The state Senate passed a bill allowing slots machines last fall, and a vote on the issue is due to come up in the House next week. Supporters claim a narrow majority in the House, with an estimated 86 of the 160 members ready to say yes to slots (although, it must be noted, that's not enough to override governor Mitt Romney's anticipated veto). Even Massachusetts voters are getting on the slots bandwagon. According to a Boston Globe poll: Fifty-three percent of voters surveyed said they were in...
Posted by JC, Mar 15, 2006 10:15 PM
Slots May Have a Shot
Massachusetts slots supporters believe legislation allowing the machines at the state's four racetracks has the best chance of passing in years: "My sense of this vote is we have a really good chance -- the best chance we have ever had," said Louis Ciarlone, president of Local 123 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, which represents 200 Suffolk Downs workers. "This is the World Series." A vote on the slots bill passed by the Senate last fall (or one very like it) has been scheduled in the House for the week of March 20. The Senate bill was approved...
Posted by JC, Feb 17, 2006 10:05 PM
Sundries
I meant to address all of these stories last week in longer posts, but never found the time ... In a report issued last Thursday, consultants to the Massachusetts State Lottery said that slot machines at the state's racetracks would bring in $1.1 billion annually without cannibalizing lottery revenues and that launching a Keno-style horseracing game would boost existing Keno revenue $168 million. The slots numbers boost slot supporters' arguments, not that the report is likely to have much effect on the slots debate when it's taken up again in March. As for the Keno game, the lottery tried to...
Posted by JC, Jan 23, 2006 08:30 PM
Limping Into the New Year
It's January 2 and Suffolk Downs, along with Massachusetts' three other racetracks, is open today for simulcasting, thanks to a 90-day extension of existing simulcasting law that was passed by the state legislature only two days before the previous law was set to expire. To secure the bill, which had been held up throughout December because of a disagreement over expanding simulcasting, the House agreed to debate and vote on a slots bill that was passed by the Senate last fall in March. House speaker Sal DiMasi is already saying though that the expanded simulcasting dispute must be resolved before...
Posted by JC, Jan 2, 2006 08:30 AM
Still Waiting ...
Massachusetts racetracks gambled big this fall, combining legislation legalizing slots with an uncontroversial simulcasting bill that had to pass for the state's tracks to continue simulcasting past December 31. Despite a veto-proof approval by the Senate in October, the legislative session ended in mid-November without a House vote, which effectively killed slots for the year (if not for the foreseeable future) and provoked the specter of the tracks laying off workers and closing for at least a couple of weeks at the start of 2006 until a bill reauthorizing simulcasting could be passed. There remained one hope: That the bill...
Posted by JC, Dec 13, 2005 09:45 PM
Doubting Slots
Racinos are coming to Florida. Whether that's such a great development is in some doubt. Related: Slots change a lot of things at the track, not least the quiet ambience of a typical grandstand on a weekday....
Posted by JC, Dec 7, 2005 08:45 AM
Mass. Slots Watch
The Massachusetts fall legislative session ends tomorrow and barring some last minute surprise House vote on the slots-simulcasting bill passed by the Senate in October, that means not only will the racetracks' best chance of getting slot machines in years pass by, but that as of January 1, all will have to close their doors and layoff workers for at least a couple of weeks, until a bill reauthorizing simulcasting is approved when the legislature reconvenes in the new year. Which can't be good news for struggling Suffolk Downs, relying as much as it does on simulcasting handle. Is it...
Posted by JC, Nov 17, 2005 08:30 AM
Mass. Slots Watch
The Massachusetts slots bill isn't fading away. Never mind that House speaker Sal DiMasi said earlier this week, fairly unequivocally, that lawmakers wouldn't be dealing with the measure passed by the Senate in October during this legislative session, which ends on November 18. House dean David Flynn is pushing for debate and a vote anyway. "This isn't like I'm going behind the back of the speaker," said Flynn. "Let's take our chances and have an open debate and let it fall where it may, win or lose ... If the speaker's against this, that's his business, let him vote no."...
Posted by JC, Nov 9, 2005 06:30 PM
"It Looks Highly Unlikely"
Massachusetts House speaker Sal DiMasi said yesterday that lawmakers would concentrate on health care and other issues in the waning days of the fall legislative session and were not likely to take up the slots bill that was passed by the Senate 26-9 in October. ''I can't say for sure that I'm going to say, 'No,' for this year, but it doesn't look likely -- it looks highly unlikely," DiMasi told the Boston Globe. The bill would have allowed 2,000 slot machines to be installed at each of the state's four racetracks. As written now, the slots measure is part...
Posted by JC, Nov 7, 2005 07:30 AM
No Vote Scheduled Yet
With little more than two weeks remaining in the 2005 Massachusetts state legislative session, no vote has been scheduled in the House on the slots bill passed by the Senate in early October. Supporters of the bill say more than 90 House lawmakers are ready to vote yes on the measure, but House leaders, including gambling opponent representative Dan Bosley, have left them guessing when the matter might be taken up, and House speaker Sal DiMasi is still mum on where he stands on the issue. A spokeswoman for the speaker told the Boston Herald that, "At this point, I...
Posted by JC, Nov 1, 2005 07:50 AM
Slots Get Another Hearing
Another hearing at the Massachusetts State House was held on Tuesday to address a slots and simulcasting bill passed by the Senate on October 6. Representative Dan Bosley, longtime gambling foe, chaired the hearing and stuck to his position that any good that might come from slots would be outweighed by the bad. He did, however, promise to bring the matter to a House vote before the legislative session ends on November 15 (Lowell Sun)....
Posted by JC, Oct 19, 2005 09:15 PM
On the Sidelines?
Joe O'Donnell is sitting out the Massachusetts slots debate (Boston Herald): He has plenty at stake in this latest, and perhaps last run at getting slot machines into Suffolk Downs and the Bay State's other racetracks. O'Donnell holds the controlling share in Suffolk. And there is strong belief in some circles that his considerable juice is required to get Gov. Mitt Romney off his absolute-veto pledge against slots. But the Hub's leading power broker (see Boston magazine) says he won't be calling in any favors on Beacon Hill. Says O'Donnell: "Personally I think [slots make] all the sense in the...
Posted by JC, Oct 15, 2005 09:55 PM
Odds Improve for Mass. Slots
So say some state legislators (Boston Herald): A small group of House lawmakers, including state Rep. Brian Wallace (D-South Boston), has been quietly lobbying colleagues and meeting with racetrack executives and union officials for more than a year. Buoyed by the state Senate's 26-9 vote to legalize thousands of slots at the state's struggling racetracks, Wallace and other pro-slots lawmakers plan to start pushing for a vote as soon as next week....
Posted by JC, Oct 9, 2005 09:45 PM
Mass. Senate Votes on Slots
Update: The bill passed the Senate by 26-9 (Boston Globe). That's two to three votes more than internal polling in the State House suggested last week and enough to override a likely veto by the governor (two senators have recused themselves from considering any slots legislation because of potential conflicts of interest, bringing the 2/3 majority required from 27 to 26 votes). Before going to the House for the a vote, the bill will be debated at a committee hearing on October 18. --- The Massachusetts State Senate is set to vote on a combination slots and simulcasting bill today...
Posted by JC, Oct 6, 2005 10:00 AM
No Slots Today
And most likely, no slots this year. Earlier this week, news spread that Massachusetts racetracks were going for broke, urging state lawmakers to attach a proposal allowing slot machines to an uncontroversial simulcasting bill that had to be passed this fall for the state's tracks to remain open, essentially daring gambling foes like the governor to shut the entire industry down. It was an audacious, desperate gamble. And like most longshot bets, it came to nothing. Inklings of trouble for the proposal came yesterday when the State House schedule for Wednesday was posted. The entry for 11:00 a.m. read: The...
Posted by JC, Sep 28, 2005 06:00 PM
Betting Everything
Massachusetts racetracks gamble big: The tracks are betting everything -- including their very survival -- in a last desperate roll of the dice to win a green light for slots, the Herald has learned. Track supporters are planning to push a controversial proposal to OK thousands of one-armed bandits at dog and horse tracks tucked into a related, but noncontroversial State House bill, according to a key lawmaker and activists on both sides of the debate. That bill, which would extend simulcasting rights that allow racetrack patrons to bet on races from around the country, must pass by year's end...
Posted by JC, Sep 24, 2005 10:45 AM
Romney to Racetracks: Drop Dead
Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney makes no secret of his political aspirations. He dreams of winning the 2008 Republican presidential nomination and then the presidency, which means his policy positions on everything from birth control to health care to public security are pitched more to the narrow interests of the social conservative wing of his political party than to the desires of Commonwealth citizens. Fortunately, we're not usually burdened by his politics because the Democrat-controlled legislature does a pretty good job of keeping the governor's red state leanings in check. Unfortunately for racing fans, that won't be the case when slots...
Posted by JC, Sep 16, 2005 10:00 AM
It's the Racing
Or, how to grow without relying on slots. Knowing that the machines won't be legalized in Virgina anytime soon, or possibly ever, "Colonial Downs, which is in its ninth year, is something of a throwback in the racing industry, a facility that is counting on building a better racing product through year-round simulcasting at a wide-ranging network of off-track betting sites; by account wagering over the Internet and by telephone; by presenting full fields of competitive races into simulcast-land; and by making a day at the races comfortable for both new and old fans." The strategy shows promise: racing days,...
Posted by JC, Jun 16, 2005 09:40 AM
Slots -- Bad Bet?
Boston Globe columnist Brian McGrory paid a recent visit to Lincoln Park in Rhode Island and came away unimpressed: The stale, hazy air smells like a Greyhound bus station, or maybe that's the nearby greyhound kennels. The merry dinging and donging of the electronic games strikes a sharp contrast to the nervous and sometimes desperate-looking people watching their Social Security checks vanish before their eyes. A bartender asks a customer if he'd like his chardonnay on ice. All the while, one question keeps popping to mind: Have we gone completely insane? You see, if some increasingly vocal Massachusetts officials have...
Posted by JC, Jun 15, 2005 11:00 AM
Mass. Slots Bills Pending
A least half a dozen slots bills are pending before a Massachusetts legislature committee, although it appears unlikely there will be any debate on the bills before the fall. (Cape Code Times)...
Posted by JC, May 31, 2005 09:00 AM
Signs of Life for Mass. Slots
The support of Boston mayor Thomas Menino for slot machines at state racetracks is bringing the issue back to life on Beacon Hill. No sign of a bill yet, though. Slots legislation was last introduced in 2003, when a bill legalizing slots came within 17 votes of passage. (Daily Item of Lynn)...
Posted by JC, May 27, 2005 06:40 AM
Mayor Menino Supports Slots
The Boston Herald reports that Boston mayor Thomas Menino has come out in favor of slot machines at Suffolk Downs. "People say it's about gambling. I look at it differently," said Menino. "It's about jobs. It's about revenue." Good for Menino -- but when will the state legislature act? Time is running out for the track. The New York-based real estate development firm Vornado recently bought a stake in Suffolk and is on the verge of drawing up a redevelopment proposal for the parcel along with Boston developer and Suffolk board member Stephen Karp. "Without slot machines in the near...
Posted by JC, May 24, 2005 11:55 AM
"It's Dying"
I went to Suffolk Downs Thursday afternoon to see a horse and place a Derby future wager. There was a small clubhouse crowd of little old men in hats marking up the Form and mean-eyed young guys in team jerseys trading complaints about bum jockeys and the horses they almost had. In the grandstand, the TVs were turned on, but the first floor concourse was empty and I watched a race alone before heading out the far doors and toward the backstretch. I called my trainer friend to ask in which barn I'd find the horse, and while I had...
Posted by JC, Apr 8, 2005 09:20 AM
Lottery Bets on Horses
Virtual horses, not live horses. Is the Massachusetts State Lottery trying to off Suffolk Downs? As a beleaguered New England racing fan, it's hard not to think the most dire thoughts when confronted by news like this: The Massachusetts State Lottery is expanding into horse racing, offering gamblers the chance to bet on an animated 12-horse race run on Keno-style video monitors. The lottery's executive director, Joseph Sullivan, said he hoped to launch the horse-racing game in November or December and expects it to bring in about $150 million over the course of its first full year. ''This game is...
Posted by JC, Apr 5, 2005 08:50 AM
Slots, Maybe
The Massachusetts legislature is likely to consider bills this spring allowing slot machines at the state's four racetracks, including Suffolk Downs. Signs are positive -- the new House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi represents East Boston and Governor Mitt Romney supports expanded gaming. But nothing is certain and there's little word yet on what kind of deal the tracks would get. I'm hoping something passes this year -- I fear that without slots, this will be Suffolk's last year of live racing. (Boston Globe)...
Posted by JC, Feb 10, 2005 10:50 AM
All Is Gloom
Without slots in Maryland, writes Andrew Beyer, "gloom and pessimism pervade the sport. Since the legislature killed all of the bids to legalize slot machines in the state, while Pennsylvania approved slots for its tracks, the future of Maryland racing appears almost hopeless. Some trainers are looking to move their operations out of the state. Employees are worried about their jobs. Breeders are worried. Racing fans are disgruntled about the quality of the product." (Washington Post)...
Posted by JC, Oct 10, 2004 04:48 PM
Hope for Suffolk Slots
The change in Massachusetts house leadership could bode well for the future of the state's tracks. (Taunton Gazette)...
Posted by JC, Sep 28, 2004 07:50 AM
New Thinking Needed
Slots aren't coming to Maryland any time soon, says John Eisenberg, and it's time for the racing industry and politicians to face up to that: "The racing industry, caught in the middle, can't afford to wait any longer. It needs to focus on fixing up its own house rather than continuing to lobby for slots. And the politicians entrenched on either side of the stalemate need to recognize they're causing harm and do something to help." (Baltimore Sun)...
Posted by JC, Sep 18, 2004 09:25 AM
Gloom in Maryland
"If they don't put slots here ... in two years you'll be talking to an empty bench." (Baltimore Sun) Related: "Maryland slots bill 'undead,' to return in 2005" (Blood-Horse)...
Posted by JC, Sep 10, 2004 07:00 AM
No Harm Done
Worries abounded at the start of the Saratoga meet that competition from the slot machines at Saratoga Gaming and Raceway would drive attendance and handle down at the Race Course. That didn't happen. In hindsight, it's easy to see why, writes Bill Finley: "There are still tens of thousands of racing purists out there who love the sport and love the cerebral aspects of handicapping. They flock to Saratoga because it offers everything that is special about thoroughbred racing.... They are not about to be lured away by whatever attraction there may be in pulling a lever and hoping blind,...
Posted by JC, Sep 9, 2004 07:40 AM
The Exodus Begins
When Pennsylvania passed its slots law in early summer, there was much talk about horses moving from surrounding states -- such as Maryland -- to the newly purse-rich tracks just to the north. What was feared has begun, reports the Baltimore Sun: "Legislative leaders here have failed in a last-ditch effort to place a slots referendum on the November ballot, and Maryland horsemen and breeders have begun what many in racing said was inevitable as long as slots remained forbidden: the exodus of horses, horsemen and horse farms."...
Posted by JC, Sep 9, 2004 07:30 AM
One Trainer's Take on Slots
Trainer Tim Woolley has a few thoughts on the new Pennsylvania slots law: "Penn National, the home of cheap claimers, will soon be a mecca for small time trainers. Winning purses will be [worth] more than the claiming prices for which they are entered and the quality of horses will increase. If trainers and owners do not keep up with the new level of play they may sink into oblivion. Playing the game can be like playing the slots, if you don't feed the machine you will not hit the jackpot."...
Posted by JC, Jul 21, 2004 05:25 PM
Stall Space Calls Follow PA Slots Law
"The expected boon is already serving as a powerful magnet. On July 7, two days after slots were signed into law, Philadelphia Park received 300 calls for stable space, director of racing Sal Sinatra said. Because of the demand, Philadelphia Park will expand its stall space to accommodate 1,800 horses, up from about 1,400 horses" (Bucks County Courier Times)....
Posted by JC, Jul 15, 2004 09:50 AM
Lots on Slots
A California judge this week "denied a request to halt California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's new gambling compacts with five Indian tribes," making passage of the November ballot initiative to put 30,000 slot machines in state racetracks even less likely (Blood-Horse). New York tracks face a different challenge: "A state appeals court ruled on Wednesday that the law allowing racetracks to install slot-machine-like video lottery terminals is unconstitutional" (New York Times). And while the new Pennsylvania law is a victory for that state's industry, its effects will be felt on tracks across the Northeast. Andrew Beyer frets about the future of...
Posted by JC, Jul 8, 2004 10:30 AM
Slots: PA to have more than Vegas
Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell "signed laws on Monday authorizing 61,000 slot machines in Pennsylvania — more than any other state except Nevada...." Revenue from slot machines, estimated at $3 billion a year, is expected to cut property taxes and revive the state's horseracing industry (AP). Related: "Drive for Nebraska slot machines moves forward" (Thoroughbred Times)....
Posted by JC, Jul 5, 2004 05:36 PM
Slots: PA Yes, CA No
Pennsylvania legislators agree "in principle" (Thoroughbred Times) to legalizing slot machines, while Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger affirms his opposition (ESPN) to a November referendum on racetrack slots in California....
Posted by JC, Jun 24, 2004 09:00 AM
