Gambling News by Gambling Headquarters

The poll, conducted by the Center for Policy Analysis at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, found 57 percent of respondents support the authorization of a resort casino, 30 percent are opposed and 14 percent are undecided. The poll and behavioral survey of 1,041 Massachusetts residents was conducted between September and November last year, according to the CFPA. When asked to rate a location for a casino, residents statewide favored western Massachusetts, Boston and the New Bedford/Fall River region, in that order, as preferred sites. They ranked Cape Cod and the Plymouth area as the least desirable locations for a casino, the CFPA said in a statement. "Support for casino gambling in Massachusetts runs deep through virtually every region, group and socio-economic strata," said Dr. Clyde W. Barrow, the CFPA's director. "Massachusetts residents strongly believe it is time the commonwealth authorize a casino to compete with Connecticut for the gambling, entertainment and tourism dollars associated with Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun." Residents also rated the potential fiscal and economic benefits of a casino above their concern over any potential social costs, with 76 percent agreeing that a casino will generate new tax revenues for the state, 69 percent believing it will spawn new job creation for Massachusetts residents, 67 percent citing its benefits to increased tourism, 62 percent believing a casino will recapture gambling monies being lost to other states, such as Connecticut and Rhode Island, and 56 percent saying it will stimulate economic development, according to the CFPA. Residents did, however, express concerns that a casino could increase political corruption. Political corruption was cited as a concern for 44 percent of respondents while gambling addiction in the state was a concern for 48 percent. The survey results echo the findings of a Boston Business Journal Business Pulse online survey conducted in early January. 65 percent of BBJ readers who took the survey said they favored legalized gambling in Massachusetts.