A group of influential mayors, Thomas M. Menino of Boston, and trade unions re-launched their campaign today to persuade lawmakers to legalize casino gambling in Massachusetts.
The group, called the “Massachusetts Coalition for Jobs and Growth,” is sending out letters to municipal officials to try to persuade them to get behind resort-style casinos, the version that is supported by Governor Deval Patrick.
House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo, whose district includes Suffolk Downs and Wonderland racetracks, has expressed strong backing for slot parlors, with the most likely venues being the state’s existing dog and horse racing tracks.
Senate President Therese Murray last week added more momentum to the debate, saying the state needed to find a new source of revenue as the state struggles through a budget crisis. “Ka-ching,” Murray told a group of business leaders at a hotel ballroom, jerking her arm downward as if pulling the lever on a slot machine.
The letter from local officials, which is going out this week, was signed by Mayors Thomas M. Menino of Boston, Kimberley Driscoll of Salem, Thomas Ambrosino of Revere, and City Manager Jay Ash of Chelsea.
Menino said in a statement. “We have an opportunity with the authorization of resort casinos to create a new and sustainable revenue source for the state and cities and towns that will also create thousands of new jobs and stimulate tourism and economic development growth. And we need to seize that opportunity now.”