Massachusetts to push for online lottery
The Bay State is likely to push again for the legalisation of an online lottery to help with state funds.
US.- Four of the five candidates that will likely succeed Jennifer Flanagan in the Senate have expressed their intentions to make lottery games available online. Flanagan introduced a bill to allow the modality before leaving the Legislature.
The main reason why the state is considering the legalisation of online lottery once again is because neighboring state New Hampshire will allow the modality in the first quarter of 2018 and is expected to steal some of the revenue that comes from gambling from Massachusetts. Therefore, lawmakers are worried that the local lottery is two steps behind other lotteries in the area.
Leominster City Councilor Claire Freda said that Massachusetts will lose the competitive edge if it doesn’t move forward with the plan of legalising the online sector. New Hampshire has recently legalised Keno as well, so the concerns around the lottery’s offering have been rising for a while.
“Our cities and town rely on this money, it’s a huge piece of municipal aid. Anything New Hampshire does certainly affects our area more than others because of our proximity to the border.” The Councilor said that more studies must be conducted in order to come up with a plan to prevent people from failing into debt if online lottery gets legalised, local media reported.
Moreover, Democratic contender Michael Mahan said that if Massachusetts does it right, the whole system can work well, but that they need to be realistic in the fact that they know the whole business will head online as all commerce is moving in that direction. He also said that he worries about the impact that it could have on small businesses.
Last month, it was reported that the Joint Committee on Consumer Protection was set to study the benefits and setbacks of the possibility of bringing online lottery to the state, after retailers complained that if it becomes a reality, the local lottery could stop being successful.
