LAST WEEK’S REVENUE REPORT from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission suggested the state’s casinos are doing pretty well, given the many restrictions imposed by COVID-19. Monthly slot revenues for the Commonwealth’s two category 2 casinos showed modest increases, with Encore Boston Harbor posting a 3.9 percent increase over November’s numbers, and MGM Springfield showing a 9.51 […]
Paul DeBole
Posted inOpinion
Questions, options in wake of insurrection
LIKE MOST AMERICANS, I sat in front of my television last week transfixed by what was happening in Washington, DC. I frantically switched from CNN to MSNBC to Fox News to our local news stations, smartphone abuzz and iPad tuned to NPR. I sat and watched for hours and was overjoyed and relieved that Congress […]
Posted inOpinion
A refreshing non-party-line vote
I AM NOT one for hyperbole, but this is the most contentious election year that I have seen. Republicans versus Democrats. Ideologues on both sides trying to outdo each other in their efforts to gain some electoral advantage. Republicans opposed to ideas that they had previously proposed simply because Democrats are now in favor of […]
Posted inOpinion
N.E. gaming market is not saturated yet
A YEAR AGO I would have said the gaming market in New England was saturated, with a relatively fixed number of customers bouncing between casinos based on promotions or geographical convenience. But a closer look at the numbers, particularly at gross receipts for slot machines, suggests the market is continuing to grow even with nine […]
Posted inOpinion
Mohegan slots tops in New England
SLOT MACHINES at the Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut are going gang-busters. In August, the casino’s slot revenue was nearly $45.6 million, just $2 million shy of the $47.5 million in slot revenue at all three Massachusetts casinos. Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut, also led the pack in New England in August in terms of […]
Posted inOpinion
My bet is Vineyard gaming is coming
THE PURSUIT of a casino by the Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe on Martha’s Vineyard may be one of the most under-covered stories in Massachusetts. The tribe is trying to open a so-called Class II gaming facility, which is typically referred to as a high-stakes bingo operation. It is bingo, but not with balls dropping and people […]
Posted inOpinion
Casino slot revenues off to a strong start
GAMING IS BACK in Massachusetts and the casinos are open and ready for business and patrons appear to be ready, willing, and able to play. Plainridge Park reopened on July 8 and both MGM Springfield and Encore Boston Harbor reopened on July 10. We now have some gaming revenue numbers to examine and try to […]
Posted inOpinion
Why help only the Mashpee Wampanoag?
IT HAS BEEN A GREAT WEEK for the Mashpee Wampanoag in their quest to open a tribal casino in Taunton. The US House of Representative passed the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Reservation Reaffirmation Act by a vote of 275 to 146. The act is designed to correct a flaw in the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 […]
Posted inOpinion
How do you license a fortune teller?
IT’S ONLY NATURAL this time of year that we turn our attention to ghouls and ghosts and things that go bump in the night. Jack-o-lanterns, trick or treaters, funny costumes, and pranks are a staple of life everywhere in the US and especially here in New England. What is the intersection of Halloween and the […]
Posted inOpinion
Nonprofits deserve a lot more scrutiny
THE ISSUE ARISES every so often, like a phoenix from the flames, especially around budget time. This year was no different. How do we, and how should we, tax nonprofit entities? Are nonprofit entities paying their fair share? Are nonprofit entities truly nonprofit? Before we answer that question, we need to take a closer look […]