It’s going to be a busy couple of weeks During this week the Legislature will be debating some very controversial issues, namely legalized gambling and public pension reform.
The former will bring in some revenue, albeit from casino licensing fees and eventually gamblers losses and the latter will in the long run save money, albeit from long suffering retired public employees.
While some of the projected gambling revenues are being targeted by leadership to local aid and the rainy day fund, expect to see virtually every “special interest group” as well as every “not so special interest group” begin to agitate for a share of that income. (You know who you are!)
I’m taking nominations for both “special interest” and “not so special interest” groups in the comment section, meanwhile, since both the Governor and the Legislature will both be constructing their FY 13 Budget on any realized increased revenues from gambling or savings from pension reform, wise advocates from both groups will take careful track of the official and unofficial projected revenues/savings as well as any and all attempts by anybody else to target those revenues
Hopefully the trusty State House News Service will publish a list of amendments and sponsors in the House Debate so we can at least speculate whose getting on the ARK, besides anti immigrant activists.
So far the First Prize for the Smartest Quote goes to House Majority Leader Ronald Mariano who said “He had no idea how the House would vote on the casino bill. “If I could predict that I’d be making money somewhere else,” he said. At a casino? “I wouldn’t do that,” he said. “I know the odds.
Cross posted at ONE Massachusetts (Check out the mini blogs on the right hand side)
Granted, there will be money spent on lobbyists, and advisers, and strategists by those who want to batten off the poor via getting a gambling license. That kind of perverse stimulus has already happened to the tune of close to $1.5 million if you count everything. Given that the “owners” will not be ploughing their profits or leaving their profits in Massachusetts, but shipping them off to Malaysia or maybe Vegas, and lottery profits will decrease my question is valid: “What if there is no net profit?” No cost benefit analysis = no reasonable basis for any of the projections for income being touted.
in the Governor’s office by the Secretary of A&F. In the Legislature by the respective Chairs of Ways and Means.
Last night, House proponents of the bill “estimate”
Of course opponents challenge those estimates because there has not been a valid cost analysis they trust. Frankly, it doesn’t matter it’s only an estimate.
Using the same analysis on this bill expanding gambling, in reviewing the materials being used to support the estimates, what I see is speculation based on unreliable documentation that does not meet the legal standard for “credible”, for “reliable” or for “current”.
In actuality, fancy footwork was done to shift the burden of proof and pursuasion to the opponents of the gambling industry to prove that there would NOT be profits.
There is no credible public record to support that this gambling bill, as drafted, will in fact lead to a net increase of revenue to this state over a ten year period.
That’s certainly one opinion.