8-2 re write of 6-3

Oxford County Casino Proposal Making Progress

Oxford County, Maine--- Black Bear Entertainment LLC, the group of business owners that are backing the casino proposal for Oxford County, made another step last Thursday when the Legal and Veterans Affairs committee held a public hearing for the proposal. The proposed casino can either be turned down or accepted by lawmakers through a vote. However, the bill does not lose much momentum because if the bill is rejected through the vote by lawmakers, it will go to a popular vote later on this year.

Casinos in Maine have always been a center of controversy. In general, there is typically quite a bit of opposition against building casinos in Maine due to the fact that casinos encourage gambling, and there is a belief that with casinos come crime. Maine is the safest states crime-wise according to the government census website, and people that oppose the bill would like to keep it that way. The people who support casinos in Maine typically argue that casinos are a great source of income for the state that it operates in. Black Bear Entertainment LLC’s casino proposal would be taxed 42%, one of the highest tax rates in the country. All of that money would be distributed around the state, and would contribute to the University of Maine system (4%), Maine’s community colleges (3%), as well as the K-12 educational systems throughout the state (25%). In a state that is under a lot of economic stress, a casino looks like a possible combatant to this problem, and that would be a casino.

Black Bear Entertainment is taking a different route in their pursuit of a casino in Maine. The careful construction of the wording of the bill was important in pushing forward the bill, as many casino proposals have failed in the past. This particular group made sure that the gambling age would not change, and it would remain at 21. In addition to this, the group supporting the bill also made sure that the Maine Gambling Control Board would have more power in overseeing the activities of the casino. By keeping the methods of control in the hands of both the casino owners and the state together, Black Bear Entertainment is hoping that this bill will go through more amicably

Although Black Bear Entertainment’s proposal looks friendly, there is some opposition to the proposed casino. The Bangor city council overall opposes the bill, citing that the Oxford County casino would have a different set of standards in comparison to Bangor’s Hollywood Slots, with an emphasis on the Oxford casino paying out 3% less taxes than Hollywood Slots. “There has to be a uniform law on this,” said Councilor Pat Blanchette.

Oxford County senator David Hastings III could not be reached for comment, and Mike Michaud could not be reached for comment directly on the issue, but a representative from his Bangor office stated that since this issue is state-related, Michaud did not have a formal opinion on the casino, because he deals more with federal issues.
The wheels are in motion, but the likely state-wide vote towards the end of the year may ultimately determine the fate of the proposed casino. Voters seem to be fairly split, with younger voters being more pro-casino, and older voters being more against the bill. “I understand the casino would bring in more money into our county, which is nice, but I just don’t think it is what this county needs right now,” said Ann Marie Eldridge, 42, of Oxford County, “With casinos comes a lot of baggage.”

Younger voters that support the bill focus on the economic boost that Oxford County, as well as Maine, will receive because of the casino. “A casino would put something of worth, something fun in our county. Maine overall is very boring and I think this would be good to put us on the map with other states that have casinos, like Connecticut” said Jeffery Eldridge, 21, son of Ann Marie and resident of Oxford County.

With the decision likely going to a state-wide vote later on this year, it appears that Maine has on its hands one of the most anticipated and closely monitored casino votes that it has ever seen.

Sources
http://www.mainebiz.biz/news45314.html
http://www.myfoxmaine.com/news/maine/87459692.html
http://www.census.gov/statab/ranks/rank21.html
http://www.bangordailynews.com/detail/139049.html