Casino news source: South Coast Today - http://www.southcoasttoday.com
Casino plan would ban smoking
By David Kibbe
Standard-Times staff writer
October 13, 2007 6:00 AM
BOSTON — Massachusetts gamblers who enjoy a smoke with their slots would be out of luck under Gov. Deval Patrick's proposal for three resort casinos.
His 80-page gambling bill explicitly bans smoking in indoor areas of state-licensed casinos. Gov. Patrick said Massachusetts would not be at a competitive disadvantage, even though smoking is permitted in vast sections of the Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun casinos in Connecticut and at slots parlors in Rhode Island.
BUTTS AND BETS
Casinos around the U.S. are grappling with how to accommodate smokers and nonsmokers.
* Foxwoods: 800 slot machines are smoke-free, out of a total of 7,200.
* Mohegan Sun: About 800 slot machines are smoke-free, out of a total of more than 6,000.
* Twin River, in Lincoln, R.I., and Newport Grand, in Newport, R.I.: Both slots parlors have a mix of smoking and nonsmoking areas.
* Atlantic City, N.J.: A new city law required 75 percent of casino floor space to be smoke-free, beginning last spring.
* Las Vegas: Smoking is allowed in casinos, but advocates are pushing to make them smoke-free.
Gov. Patrick told reporters the casino bill "does not change" the state's workplace smoking ban, which took effect in 2004.
Nationwide, casinos are one of the last bastions for smokers, who for decades have been free to puff away guilt-free under the buzz and whirr of casino games. Even though 25 states now have indoor smoking bans, many of them exempt gambling facilities.
Foxwoods recently expanded its nonsmoking area, but it only covers 11 percent of the resort's 7,200 slot machines.
Arthur Henick, a spokesman for the Mashantucket Pequot tribe, said smoking has long been allowed at casinos that predate the tribe's Foxwoods resort, including those in Las Vegas and Atlantic City.
"Historically, casinos have been places where people are allowed to smoke," he said. "Clearly, many customers are comfortable doing that."
The American Gaming Association fought smoking regulations in commercial casinos for years, saying it would hurt business. The group has recently softened its stance, as workplace smoking bans have spread across the country.
Brian Lehman, a spokesman for the gaming association, declined to say whether Massachusetts casinos would be at an economic disadvantage by not allowing smoking.
"There is an argument that can cut into profits if you have other jurisdictions or Indian casinos nearby that do allow smoking," Mr. Lehman said.
Indian casinos do not have to abide by state smoking regulations because they are sovereign nations on reservation land. Amy Lambiaso, a spokeswoman for the newly recognized Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, said it was too early to say whether smoking would be allowed at the casino the tribe is seeking in Middleboro.
Clyde Barrow, a casino researcher at the Center for Policy Analysis for UMass Dartmouth, speculated that the tribe would initially allow smoking if it opened an Indian casino, as a opposed to a state-licensed one.
But he said the trend was turning against smoke-filled gambling halls.
Atlantic City recently required casinos to set aside 75 percent of their gambling space for nonsmokers, and some casinos in that city have decided to go 100 percent nonsmoking. The issue is also being hotly debated in Las Vegas.
Barrow said Massachusetts could use smoke-free casinos as a selling point.
"I would argue that it gives you a competitive advantage, when you consider that 77 percent of Americans don't smoke," Mr. Barrow said. "If you are given the alternative between smoke-free and lots of smoke, and it's a comparable facility, I think it gives you one additional attraction."
When the state of Delaware's indoor smoking ban made racinos smoke-free in 2002, gambling revenue dipped, but then rose back up and remained steady, experts said. A study by tobacco control researchers at the University of California blamed the temporary downturn on the economy, and found no link to Delaware's smoking ban.
Massachusetts was the sixth state in the nation to pass a workplace smoking ban when former Gov. Mitt Romney signed the law in 2004. Since then, smoke-free laws have spread to 25 states.
Russet Breslau, of Tobacco Free Mass, said Gov. Patrick's refusal to exempt casinos from the smoking ban "shows a commitment to protect both workers and patrons. It really comes down to the health of the workers."
While Foxwoods has no plans to go totally smoke-free, the Mashantucket Pequot tribe is acknowledging that some people want clean air with their poker chips. Half of its Rainmaker Casino — one of six casinos in the resort — is now smoke-free.
"Foxwoods was one of the first casinos to dedicate a special area to nonsmoking, realizing that it was an important step." said Mr. Henick, the tribal spokesman. "Like any good business, Foxwoods takes a look at where trends are going and what customers are telling us, and then acts accordingly. For instance, this recent expansion in the Rainmaker Casino came about because of feedback from employees, as well as patrons." |
|
