Casinos Fight Historical Horse Racing Machines in Massachusetts

Massachusetts’ three commercial casinos are lobbying lawmakers to drop a proposal for historical horse racing machines in Massachusetts from the state’s pending economic development bill. In a letter sent to legislators on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, the operators said the terminals would cost the state $45 million to $73 million a year in tax revenue, The Boston Globe reported. Suffolk Downs in East Boston is one of the two sites named in the plan.

The Numbers: Two Dueling Economic Reports

The casino operators behind Encore Boston Harbor (Wynn Resorts), MGM Springfield (MGM Resorts) and Plainridge Park Casino (Penn Entertainment) normally compete with one another. For this fight, they hired two gambling consultants to estimate what the new machines would do to their business. According to the Globe’s account of that report:

• State tax revenue would fall by $45 million to $73 million each year, because money now spent at the casinos would shift to the new machines.
• The three casinos would cut between 585 and 975 jobs.
• The study looked at two scenarios: venues at Suffolk Downs and Raynham Park, and a larger build-out that adds a third horse-racing machine site in Boston.

The casino study is a direct response to an earlier report funded by developer Richard Fields, the main backer of the proposal. Fields’ report projected that the machines could bring in $120 million a year in new state tax revenue by the third year if they were installed at Suffolk Downs, a former thoroughbred track, and Raynham, a former dog track. It also projected that the two facilities, including on-site restaurants, would create 1,200 jobs. The two studies assume different numbers of machines at each site, partly because the House language sets no cap.

What Historical Horse Racing Machines Are

The terminals look and play much like slot machines, but each spin is tied to the outcome of a horse race that has already been run. Because of that link, they are regulated as pari-mutuel track betting rather than as casino gambling. New Hampshire has built a sizable gaming industry around them, and Massachusetts casinos have faced growing competition from those venues across the border, according to the Globe.

The two sides disagree on how different the machines really are. Cory Morowitz, one of the casinos’ consultants, told the Globe that “from a consumer standpoint, there’s very little difference” and that “the consumer thinks they’re playing slots.” Fields, a longtime horse racing enthusiast, says the two forms of wagering are significantly different.

Where the Economic Development Bill Stands

The horse racing language rides inside a much larger bill. On July 8, 2026, the House passed a $561 million economic development package (H 5562) that covers artificial intelligence and quantum computing, robotics, defense, housing and downtown revitalization, State House News Service reported. One of the consolidated amendments adopted that night lets simulcast centers take bets on “historical horse races” on electronic terminals and through smartphones. Under the House bill, the tax revenue from the machines would support struggling community hospitals and health centers.

The Senate left the provision out of its version, and the issue is now one of the main sticking points in House-Senate negotiations, the Globe reported. The same House bill also includes a local-option tenant right of first refusal, which we covered when the Boston City Council took up tenant right of first refusal.

What It Could Mean for East Boston and Suffolk Downs

Suffolk Downs no longer runs live racing and now operates as a simulcasting parlor; Fields is an investor in the site. Much of the former track property is being redeveloped as a large mixed-use neighborhood near the Blue Line, and the area has seen other new housing projects, including the 295 Waldemar Ave. apartments in East Boston.

Fields told the Globe on Monday that he would only bring the machines to Suffolk Downs if he had widespread neighborhood support. After pushback from East Boston residents, he said he is open to building elsewhere in Suffolk County and has looked at sites in downtown Boston. He also said he has an option to buy the shuttered Raynham site.

Gambling revenue in Massachusetts has flattened since the three casinos opened, according to the Globe. Morowitz said he expects some net growth in the overall market if the machines are allowed, along with a large amount of revenue shifting away from the existing casinos.

Reactions

Responding to the casinos’ report, Fields said his facilities would still produce net job and tax growth after accounting for lost casino business. “You’ve just got to up your game,” he told the Globe. “It’s going to be an entertainment facility that happens to have HHR machines.” The casinos’ letter urged lawmakers to keep the provision out of the final bill because of what it called “adverse impacts” on their business and on the state.

The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, which runs a small casino in Taunton near the Raynham site, was not included in the operators’ report but protested on the State House steps last week, the Globe reported. Fields said he does not blame the tribe for its concerns and pledged to seek a cooperation agreement if the legislation passes. “There’s plenty of business out there,” he said.

Additional Details

• The two former tracks named in the House language are Suffolk Downs (East Boston and Revere) and Raynham Park (Raynham).
• Machines approved under the House bill would be regulated as track betting, which many observers consider a lighter form of oversight than casino slot rules, according to the Globe.
• Critics have argued since the summer that the House plan amounts to adding slot machines outside the casino licensing system, State House News Service reported.

Featured image: Suffolk Downs in East Boston. Photo by bradfordst219 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0; cropped.

Sources

• The Boston Globe: Casinos argue allowing ‘historical horse racing’ machines at tracks will cut into their business (Oct. 19, 2026)
• State House News Service: House passes $561M catch-all bill, from AI to horse race bets (July 8, 2026)
• State House News Service: Critics say House ‘horse’ plan just an attempt to add slot machines
• Wikimedia Commons: Suffolk Downs photo (image credit)