State official questions Class II in Massachusetts

Thursday, April 5, 2007  

The Massachusetts state treasurer says the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe might be breaking the law if it decides to open a Class II facility.

Treasurer Tim Cahill said the electronic casino machines the tribe might offer are illegal because they resemble slot machines, which are outlawed in the state. “I think it’s a slot machine, and until the Legislature makes a decision on whether slot machines should be made legal, we are not going to do that and we don’t think anyone else should be able to do that," he told The Boston Herald.

The tribe says it has the authority to offer electronic Class II machines once it finds a land base. The tribe's federal recognition is being finalized.

The tribe, however, wants to negotiate a Class III compact for slot machines, table games and related games. "The time for deal-making is now, before it’s too late to negotiate the terms that most favor the taxpayers," The Boston Herald says in an editorial.

Get the Story:
Cahill: Casino would drain state $ (The Boston Herald 4/5)
Tribe makes bingo gambit (The Cape Cod Times 4/5)
Time to negotiate over tribal gaming (The Boston Herald 4/5)