博彩成为美国许多州赢得竞选的主要因素

  全美处于竞选者致力于赢得他们各自竞选战役的火热选举季节中,在一些州,有关博彩的问题可能就是政治家在今年秋天当选的决定性因素。

  在过去几年中,关于博彩业扩张在全美都是一个使立法者两极分化的问题。自2008年的经济衰退以来,立法者一直在争论赌场、彩票和体育博彩是不是有助解决政府财政预算的手段,很多情况证明这个答案是yes,财政预算的缺口弥补要感谢博彩业的扩张。

  另外一些情况是:在新罕布什尔州,肯塔基州,伊利诺伊州和佛罗里达州,博彩业的扩张已经遭遇各自法律的瓶颈,在这些州即将到来的11月选举中将有很长的时间会消耗在如何决定博彩业今后的命运。

  博彩业分析师布拉德·道金斯说“博彩是一个在过去十年不断演变的问题,十年前,立法者是完全不同意在自己的州开设赌场和允许在线博彩,现在,这种情况转变为大多数的立法者赞成某种形式的博彩业扩张。”

  新罕布什尔州长约翰.兰奇是一贯反对开设赌场的,而他的反对派却严重阻碍着立法者提出法案让州长签署,11月份的州长选举候选人都是支持博彩业扩张的,这将在谁能赢得竞选中发挥主要作用。

  “我想这是州长的一个关键问题”共和党候选人奥维德.拉蒙塔涅说“就是(博彩业扩张)创造就业就会,我会说我不排除这种可能性”,创造就业机会是纽约州、马里兰州、宾夕法尼亚州、爱荷华州和马萨诸塞州都在扩大他们的博彩经营项目的驱动因素,宾夕法尼亚州的新赌场带来数以千计的就业机会和亿万美元的税收收入,马萨诸塞州的立法者在今年早些时候经过就这个问题的多年争论批准了开设赌场。在肯塔基州,州长史蒂夫.比歇尔是站在允许老虎机经营一方的,但是使之成为现实的阻力太大了,比歇尔期望明年新一届的立法者能够推动这个议题。

  译文:

  Political Wins Could Revolve Around Gambling Issue In Many States

  The political season is heating up around the US as potential legislators focus on campaigns to win their respective elections. In many states, it is the gambling issue that could be the deciding factor on which politicians get elected this Fall.

  Over the past couple of years, the gambling expansion issue is one that has polarized lawmakers around the US. Since the economic recession of 2008, lawmakers have been debating whether casino, lottery, and sports gambling is an avenue that could help state budgets. In many cases, the answer has been yes, and budget gaps have been closed thanks to the gambling expansion.

  In other cases, such as New Hampshire, Kentucky, Illinois, and Florida, gambling expansion has hit a roadblock in the respective Legislature’s. The upcoming November election will go a long way in determining the fate of gambling in the future for these states, and lawmakers are gearing up for a hard-fought battle over the issue.

  ”The gambling issue is one that has evolved over the past decade,” said Gaming Analyst Brad Dawkins. “Ten years ago, lawmakers were completely closed to the idea of casinos in their state and gambling online. Now, the trend is turning and the majority of legislators are in favor of some form of gambling expansion.”

  In New Hampshire, Governor John Lunch has been against casinos, and his opposition has made it difficult for lawmakers to come up with a bill the governor would sign. The candidates for the gubernatorial race in November are all open to the idea of gambling expansion, and that could play a major role in who will be the eventual winner.

  ”I think it’s (casinos) a key gubernatorial issue,” said Republican candidate Ovide Lamontagne. “The key here is creating jobs. I would say I’m not ruling it out.”

  Job creation has been the driving factor behind states such as New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Iowa, and Massachusetts all expanding their gaming options. New casinos have brought thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue to Pennsylvania. Massachusetts legislators authorized casinos earlier this year after years of debate on the issue.

  In Kentucky, Governor Steve Beshear has been on the side of bringing slots to state race tracks, but the opposition has been too strong to make that a reality. Beshear is hoping that a new group of legislators will help finally push the issue through next year.