Connecticut could possibly be home to as much as three new casinos in the years to come, if a proposal that was made general public by lawmakers on Tuesday is finally approved.

A number of state legislators, along utilizing the leaders of both the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribes (which operate the Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods resorts, correspondingly), introduced the proposition at a news conference in Hartford on Tuesday early morning.

The proposal will be presented as a way to protect jobs in Connecticut at a time whenever Massachusetts is gearing up to build as much as three complete scale casinos and a slots parlor in different elements of that state.

Connecticut lawmakers and tribal video gaming officials worry that these facilities, in particular an MGM resort in Springfield, could cut deeply into traffic to the Connecticut gambling enterprises, which in turn would cause the state to lose significant tax revenues.

‚Massachusetts has declared economic war on us, and we’re going to fight back,‘ said Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff (D-Norwalk).

Casinos Would Be Located Near Significant Highways

The theory is to put up to three smaller casinos nearby the three major highways that explain to you Connecticut. These casinos that are new become satellite operations for both Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun, because of the two tribes nevertheless attempting to offer promotions that would drive more traffic to the bigger existing facilities in southeastern Connecticut.

Therefore far, nearly all of the talk has been in regards to the I-91 corridor north of Hartford, where a casino could stop gamblers from travelling north to Springfield once the MGM resort is built there. However, there could additionally be interest in building somewhere along I-95 (which runs along southern Connecticut from New York City) and I-84 (which enters western Connecticut near Danbury then runs northeast towards eastern Massachusetts).

In previous years, there are talks about placing casinos in locations including Danbury, which is close to the New York border and would satisfy the I-84 location. Nevertheless, lawmakers say they aren’t favoring any locations at this point, and would enable the market to decide where some of these casinos that are new be built.

New Places Could Stop Flow of Gamblers to Neighboring States

‚ We all know that the 91 corridor is of interest to them right now, but they’re additionally experiencing some force through the New York area,‘ said State Senator Tim Larson (D-East Hartford). ‚So, without focusing on a town that is specific we thought three had been appropriate.‘

State Senator Catherine Osten (D-Sprague), who oversees the district which includes both Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun, says that having these casino locations could stop Connecticut residents from taking their gambling dollars to Massachusetts, New York, or Rhode Island, most of which have (or will soon have) casinos of their very own.

‚By obtaining the satellite facilities within the Connecticut edge, it’s going to stop people from crossing the Connecticut borders for a night of gaming and will carry on keeping them in connecticut,‘ osten stated.

Public just isn’t Convinced That continuing state Needs More Gaming

However the proposal will face significant hurdles, maybe not the least of which will be public opinion. a poll that is new Wednesday by Quinnipiac University found that just 20 percent of Connecticut voters help including new gambling sites to the state. Even when specifically asked about a plan about permitting the two tribes to put casinos close to the Massachusetts and New York borders, only 36 percent supported such a plan, while 59 percent were opposed. Similarly, simply 23 percent of voters said they might support a gaming establishment in their own hometown.