Encore Boston Harbor Pushes Back Against Massachusetts iGaming Bill

^{Encore Boston Harbor’s parent company, Wynn Resorts, is urging lawmakers to reject a Massachusetts iGaming bill that could threaten the state's brick-and-mortar casinos. (Photo: Michael Dwyer / Alamy)}

Wynn Resorts, the operator of Encore Boston Harbor, is publicly opposing a bill that would bring online casino games to the state of Massachusetts.

While Wynn didn’t testify at the Massachusetts Legislature’s recent economic development committee earlier this month, the company sent a letter to the committee co-chairs outlining why it felt that iGaming was a losing bet for the state's land-based casinos.

Cannibalization, Gambling Harm Cited by Opposition

In the letter, Wynn Executive Director of Government Relations Eileen McAnneny argues that online gambling comes with greater risks for problem gambling and addiction risk than physical casinos. While supporters of iGaming have pointed to the revenue that could be generated by legalizing and regulating online casinos, McAnneny argued that this could come with heavy costs.

“The rationale that internet casino gambling will increase state revenues does not factor in the significant cannibalization of brick-and-mortar gaming taxes, lost hotel, restaurant, and entertainment tax revenues, lost tax revenues stemming from significant job losses, and lost tax revenues from reductions in casino purchases from small businesses and suppliers,” McAnneny wrote.

The letter also referenced the potential "social costs" of online casino legalization including "increased problem gambling, bankruptcies, welfare, health care costs, homelessness, domestic violence and family separation, criminal justice impacts."

The potential impacts on brick-and-mortar casinos in the state have led other groups to echo McAnneny's concerns as well. The Retailers Association of Massachusetts signed on to the Wynn letter out of fear of how iGaming could affect visitation to its' member businesses, while casino workers unions are concerned about job losses seen in other states that have expanded iGaming.

Former Massachusetts state representative David Nangle, who publicly identifies as a gambling addict, told the committee it shouldn’t support the online casino bill.

“There’s no Narcan for gambling,” Nangle told committee members. “Don’t turn every cellphone in Massachusetts into a casino.”

DraftKings Supports Bills, Touting New Revenue Stream for State

DraftKings, the Massachusetts-based online gambling giant, has led support for Rep. David Muradian's online gambling proposal. DraftKings Senior Government Affairs Manager Rebecca London told lawmakers the bill could raise $170 to $200 million annually in new tax revenue for the state. 

Muradian’s bill has support from some in the brick-and-mortar gaming industry, such as PENN Entertainment – the owner of Plainridge Park Casino. It requires online licenses to be tied to existing casinos in the state, thus ensuring that those companies don’t lose out on revenue if gamblers move online. 

A competing bill proposed by Sen. Paul Feeney doesn’t include this provision and instead uses a different tax structure, with DraftKings saying it could generate as much as $275 million per year. 

While Wynn didn’t mention it in its' letter, an iGaming bill could potentially jeopardize a planned $400 million expansion at Encore Boston Harbor, which has been delayed since 2024 over an inability to reach terms with the city of Everett. If online casinos have the opportunity to siphon revenue from physical casinos, iGaming could give Wynn Resorts even more reason to limit its investment into the Massachusetts market.