Posted inGambling

iLottery still a treasurer priority as online betting evolves

LEGISLATORS ULTIMATELY opted against bringing the Massachusetts State Lottery online in their compromise budget for this fiscal year, but state Treasurer Deb Goldberg is still aggressively pushing for it.  With the lottery and its $1 billion of annual profits churning through local corner stores and retailers, efforts to attract new customer bases and compete with online […]

Posted inGambling

Campbell cautions against headlong rush to online lottery

ATTORNEY GENERAL Andrea Campbell has been reluctant to dive head-first into the debate over whether to move state lottery games online, steering clear of unconditional support or opposition to such a move. But she continues to wade in on the issue in ways that signal a wariness toward expanding the state-run gambling enterprise. What’s more, her […]

Posted inEconomy, Gambling, Opinion

An online lottery will hurt Main Street retailers

LOCALLY OWNED retail stores are rightfully up in arms about inclusion of an online lottery in the House fiscal 2024 budget. As demonstrated through testimony before the Legislature’s  Joint Committee on Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure, an online lottery system in competition against stores is not needed. The expansion of the lottery online will harm […]

Posted inPolitics

Competitiveness is watchword on Beacon Hill, but what does it mean?

BEACON HILL’S favorite buzzword these days is “competitiveness,” but the meaning isn’t always the same among the three big players in state government and their different approaches to the topic are shaping the upcoming budget debate.  The Senate appears to be leaning into its more liberal reputation in defining competitiveness, proposing beefy investments in human […]

Posted inGambling

Envisioning a Massachusetts ‘iLottery’

IF THE MASSACHUSETTS LOTTERY expands onto the internet with a new “iLottery,” what could it look like? Let’s spin the wheel. Option 1 – Michigan. Started in 2014, the Michigan lottery is “the standard” for online lottery platforms, says interim Massachusetts State Lottery director Mark Bracken. The site hits you with a big payout draw […]