On April 11, 2013 the Massachusetts Gaming Commission held its 63rd public meeting. Highlights from the meeting included: Investigations The Commission discussed the ongoing investigations process. Investigations are proceeding, although it is unclear whether the Commission will be able to meet its April 30 deadline for the Category 2 applicants. …
By Bob Crawford and Eleanor Simon On April 4, 2013, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission held its 62nd public meeting. In addition to the discussion on Region C, the commissioners heard from Director Wells on investigations developments, Ombudsman Ziemba on community progress, and Director Durenberger on Racing Division matters. Highlights from…
On March 21, 2013, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission heard testimony from interested parties to determine how to proceed in Region C (Southeastern Massachusetts). Two weeks later, on April 4, the Commission was poised to take a vote on whether to open up Region C to commercial bids. While many of…
By Robert Crawford and Eleanor C. Simon The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe and the Gov. Deval Patrick administration have come to an agreement on a revised Compact under which the Tribe will pay the Commonwealth a share of its gross gaming revenue from a proposed tribal casino in Taunton based on…
By Robert Crawford and Eleanor C. Simon The status of gaming-related activity in Region C, the Southeastern Massachusetts region, is currently up in the air due to a number of different factors, but we could receive answers to at least some of the questions in the coming weeks. Here is…
On Feb. 21, 2013, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission held its 53rd public meeting. Highlights from the meeting included: Region C Update The Commissioners briefly discussed next steps with respect to Region C, the Southeastern Massachusetts region, which is currently closed to any commercial casino facilities as the Mashpee Wampanoag pursue…
By Robert Crawford and Eleanor C. Simon The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe has released a Feb. 7, 2013 letter from Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn commenting on the status of the Tribe’s application with the Office of Indian Gaming. The Tribe’s application, relating to 146 acres of land in…
By Bob Crawford and Beth Withers The bill-filing period for the Massachusetts 2013-2014 legislative session has concluded and eight bills were filed that are related to gambling in some respect. This is not surprising, given that An Act Establishing Expanded Gaming in the Commonwealth (the “Expanded Gaming Bill”) just passed during the…