Massachusetts Treasurer Suggests Online Gambling Coming To The State

Massachusetts only earlier this year made their entrance into the US casinos industry, and it appears that the state may be moving either further into the gambling arena. Treasurer Steven Grossman has suggested that online gambling may be closer to reality in Massachusetts than some may think.

“Internet gambling is going to be a fact of life and is going to have an impact on lotteries all over the country in the relatively near future,” said Grossman. “We want to move as quickly as we can, as appropriately as we can.”

Grossman made his immediate plan known this week, and it involves allowing the Massachusetts Lottery to sell their tickets online. Several states have altered their laws in recent years to allow for online lottery sales, and the result has been an increase in sales in these states. Grossman is hoping Massachusetts can follow on that path.

The treasurer stated that he will be asking the Legislature, as early as the first of the year, to remove the parts of Massachusetts law that block Internet betting. One of the main sticking points with the current law is that credit cards cannot be used to purchase tickets, and the cards would be a major source for online gamblers to buy the lottery tickets.

Another sticking point for any law changes is the thousands of retail outlets that currently sell the lottery tickets. The outlets want protection from losing revenue to online sales, and many lawmakers have indicated that there would have to be protection in place before they voted in favor of online sales.

Grossman, who oversees the lottery in Massachusetts, has set up a group of lawmakers to examine the online gambling in relation to the lottery. The group then reported their findings back to the treasurer, who is in the process of reviewing the recommendations before presenting a proposal to legislators.