Massachusetts’ lawmakers to study the potential of online gaming

The Massachusetts Legislature has teamed up with gaming experts to explore the potential of legalising online gaming in the US state.

A special commission, led by Senator Eileen Donoghue and Representative Joseph Wagner, has been assigned to carry out the comprehensive review.

The commission, funded in the 2017 fiscal year budget, will cover: “Economic development, consumer protection, taxation, legal and regulatory structures, implications for existing gaming, burdens and benefits to the commonwealth and any other factors the commission deems relevant”.

Stephen Crosby, Massachusetts Gaming Commission Chairman and long-standing supporter of legalising online poker and daily fantasy sports in the state, is also a member of the new research commission.

The commission has been set up as a result of a bill that legalised fantasy contests in the state when it was passed this summer, and is set to expire in July 2018. However, if the commission’s research supports the legalisation of online gambling and daily fantasy sports in Massachusetts, then the creation of a permanent regulatory framework may be within the realms of possibility.