Patrick: Casinos plan could still fly
Says talk not based on possibility that DiMasi will leave
BROOKLINE - Despite a recent high-profile defeat, legislation to legalize casino gambling in Massachusetts may yet come back, Governor Deval Patrick said yesterday.
Patrick said he wasn't basing his statement on the possible departure of House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi, a gambling opponent, but a confluence of other factors.
The governor told a Brookline Chamber of Commerce audience that an unyielding need for property tax relief, the possibility of slot machines at the state's racetracks, and ongoing efforts by the Wampanoag Indians to build their own casino will revive the discussions.
"There's a lot of interest in it, and issues that die in one session don't die a permanent death," Patrick said. "They tend to come back over time."
Under one scenario, Patrick said, casino gambling supporters might try to expand the slot machine bill to include resort-style casinos. Patrick projected that his plan for three casinos would generate at least $600 million in licensing fees, $400 million in annual tax revenues, and 20,000 permanent jobs.
DiMasi led the effort to kill the plan. He argued the revenues would be offset by social and economic costs, including lost business at other tourist destinations.
More recently, though, potential successors have been jockeying for position as DiMasi has faced allegations of ethical lapses. The speaker has said he's not leaving, and Patrick answered a flat "no" when asked whether his comments in Brookline were rooted in a suspicion the speaker would leave.
Yet on two occasions with his audience, the governor raised the prospect of a renewed gambling debate.
Patrick held fast to his support for the plan, despite criticism from one questioner, who labeled casino gambling "predatory." The governor said that he once had doubts about casinos, but that he felt the gains outweighed the costs.
"It may yet come back in the Legislature," he said of his plan.
Later, when asked about how to provide permanent property tax relief, the governor complained that the House had rejected four ideas he proposed.
After ticking off his ideas for 1 percent increases in the meals and hotels taxes, as well as closing a telecommunications tax loophole, he said, "Resort casinos have been rejected for the time being."
A DiMasi spokeswoman declined to comment.
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