Gaming News

Expect gambling issue to return to NH

CONCORD, New Hampshire -- As reported by the New Hampshire Union Leader: "New Hampshire has a new two-year budget, stripped of any expansion of gambling.

"But like Red Sox fans of old, gambling proponents are saying, 'Wait till next year.' They say they will keep pushing to pass a gambling bill, arguing it will fund a state budget that relies too much on new or higher taxes.

"'We're going to continue to make our voices heard as to what the benefits of a limited expansion of gambling are,' said Richard Killion, lobbyist for the Fix-it-Now coalition, which worked to legalize video slot machines.

"Gambling interests fought over the past six months to bring up to 13,000 slot machines to three race tracks and two North Country casinos, promising $200 million in state revenue. The largest installation -- up to 5,000 slot machines -- would have been at Rockingham Park in Salem.

"They say polls show the public already supports gambling. Pollster Andrew Smith at the UNH Survey Center said he has found that support is expressed as a preference -- respondents would rather see gambling than broad-based taxes like an income or sales tax, or higher property taxes..."

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