The Portland Press Herald
The Maine Senate cast split votes on two gambling bills Thursday, voting for one that would allow racinos in Biddeford and Washington County and against one that would allow a casino in Lewiston. With vetoes expected if the bills are sent to Gov. Paul LePage, who has said he wants voters to decide whether to expand gambling in the state, the citizens initiatives are likely to remain alive regardless of legislative action.
Maine may have a new governor and the first Republican-controlled Legislature in decades, but little has changed when it comes to setting policy on gambling. It appears that voters, not lawmakers, still make the big decisions. The Legislature is faced with 13 bills that would amend the state’s gaming laws. It also has to decide the fate of two ballot initiatives that seek to open up new gambling operations in Lewiston, Biddeford and Washington County.
The backers of a proposed racino in Biddeford filed more than 76,000 signatures with the state Wednesday for a citizens’ initiative that would allow the proposal and a similar one in Washington County to move forward. The initiative aims to change provisions of Maine’s gambling law that now prevent the projects from being built.