All the recent polls have been indicating support for casinos in Massachusetts is slipping, but a new Boston Globe survey indicates voters would back the state gaming law by an 11-point margin if it came up for a vote in November.

The poll indicates 52 percent of those surveyed would vote to keep the law in place, while 41 percent would vote to repeal it. Asked where they wanted a Greater Boston casino located, 20 percent said Revere, 7 percent said Everett, and 39 percent said both locations are fine. That means two-thirds of voters are OK with some location, while less than a third said they do not approve of gaming in the Greater Boston area.

 

The new poll paints a very different picture from other recent surveys. A Suffolk University/Boston Herald poll released 11 days ago indicated 47 percent of voters disapproved of locating casinos in Massachusetts, 37 percent approved, and 15 percent were undecided. A WBUR/MassINC Polling Group survey released in March suggested the once-large margin of support for casinos had evaporated, with 46 percent supporting casinos in Massachusetts and 43 percent opposed.

The questions asked by the polls varied slightly. The Globe poll asked voters whether they supported repeal of the Expanded Gaming Act, which authorized three casinos in Massachusetts. The Suffolk and WBUR polls asked whether voters approved or disapproved of plans to locate gambling casinos in Massachusetts.

The Globe wording seems the most relevant, given that a group opposed to casinos is expected to place a repeal question on the ballot in November if the Supreme Judicial Court rules the wording is constitutional.

–BRUCE MOHL   

BEACON HILL

Federal judge William Young tells prosecutors in the trial of Probation commissioner John O’Brien they have five days to wrap things up, CommonWealth reports. Rep. Anne Gobi may be a politician, but, judging from her testimony in the Probation trial, she was clueless about a speakership fight going on around her. Meanwhile, a former Probation supervisor reveals he kept voicemails from superiors directing him to support certain candidates, the Globe reports.

A new legislative proposal would double the state limit on campaign contributions, raising it from $500 to $1,000, CommonWealth reports.

The Department of Children and Families’ referrals of children to foster care has skyrocketed.

Republican state Sen. Robert Hedlund of Weymouth held up a compromise welfare reform bill for one week after complaining the conference committee of which he was a member has formally met just once since November.

The MetroWest Daily News gives Gov. Deval Patrick props for convening a meeting with other New England governor to discuss opiate addiction. Maine Gov. Paul LePage took a pass, complaining that the others wouldn’t have listened to him because he is a Republican.

MUNICIPAL MATTERS

The man Lawrence Mayor Daniel Rivera hired to be the city’s comptroller resigned as the Eagle-Tribune was preparing a story about inaccuracies on the resume he used to land the post.

The Boston Globe calls out Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno for his less than welcoming attitude toward refugees.

CASINOS

Wynn Enterprises has a good day. One of the co-owners of Wynn’s proposed casino site in Everett finally signs a pledge that he has no secret partners, a move that would appear to end months of speculation about whether the deal could go forward. Wynn also wins arbitrations with Somerville and Chelsea over surrounding community payments, CommonWealth reports.

The Wall Street Journal details saturation in the northeastern casino market. The CEO of Foxwoods tells the Journal, “There is dramatic oversupply in the industry right now.”

The Springfield casino poses a big test for the city’s Mayor Sarno.

NATIONAL POLITICS/WASHINGTON

Federal prosecutors accuse Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin of engaging in a criminal fundraising scheme, Governing reports. The scandal centers on illegal coordination between the Walker campaign and dark money nonprofits. CommonWealth previously tackled the thorny legal issues surrounding political nonprofits and super PACs. New York magazine asks, are there any Republican presidential hopefuls who can stay out of legal trouble?

New York is on the verge of legalizing medical marijuana.

ELECTIONS

Secretary of State William Galvin‘s office is charging David D’Arcangelo, his Republican opponent in this year’s election, $5,300 for a public records request the challenger submitted about the cost of television ads Galvin has run over his tenure.

Charlie Baker headlines a celebration of gas tax opponents, who say they’ve collected enough signatures to put a question on November’s ballot aimed at repealing the gas tax’s new inflation peg.

Does Don Berwick have mass appeal?

Mitt Romney will stump for Scott Brown in New Hampshire.

EDUCATION

Braintree school officials decided against relaxing the district’s harsh tardy rule that says students who arrive even one minute late without an excused reason cannot participate in any school-related social or athletic events that day.

Washington, DC , delays for a year the implementation of a new system to evaluate teachers based on test scores of their students, Education Week reports.

WBUR explores how the Boston school busing decision 40 years ago is still affecting the city’s schools today.

Freetown officials are seeking to recover $320,000 that was mistakenly awarded to Lakeville by an apparent calculation error in state reimbursements for the towns’ regional school district.

The University of Massachusetts freezes tuition and fees for a second straight year, contingent on state funding.

ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT

The company seeking to cap and close a Dartmouth landfill has filed suit against the town over a bylaw passed by the Board of Health restricting transportation of contaminated soil.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE

Phillip Chism , the 15-year-old accused of murdering his teacher, now stands accused of attacking a female staffer at a youth detention center. Law enforcement officials apparently had expressed concern about security at the facility, the Salem News reports.

Two Wareham police officers are under investigation after an elderly woman charged she was hit by one of the officers after her son filmed them responding to a domestic disturbance, a video that has been posted on Youtube.

The federal government announces new sexual assault rules that colleges will have to abide by.

Executions in the United States have resumed with three inmates put to death over a 24-hour period Tuesday and Wednesday Florida, Georgia, and Missouri while the debate over the secret mix of lethal drugs continued.

MEDIA

The Washington Post, the New York Times, and Mozilla plan to develop a new platform for reader comments and share it with other publications.