Massachusetts Anti-Casino Ballot Question Gets Nixed by State AG
A citizens’ anti-gambling effort has been shot down by the State’s Attorney General
While the state of Massachusetts is gearing up for rapid expansion of gambling in the state, not everyone has been excited about the move. That is why some anti-gambling activists there have actually created a petition so that you can force a statewide vote on set up casino tasks could be able to maneuver forward.
Those that are against the casinos that are new able to gather enough signatures to send the ballot question forward to the attorney general’s office. But unfortunately for them, the state solicitor however a stop to the move, saying that the ballot question would not be legal underneath the state’s ballot effort process.
Constitutional Provisions Preclude Ballot Question
The ballot initiative process is covered by Article 48 under the current state Constitution. That article not only outlines the process for getting a relevant concern regarding the ballot, but additionally establishes so what can and can’t be included in such concerns. One of the rules for proposals says that they cannot restrict an entity’s ‘right to receive payment for private property appropriated to public use’.
Based on state solicitor Peter Sacks, if the concern were to be authorized by the public, thus closing the casino deals immediately, it would simply take the casino developers’ contract rights away without the compensation. It would additionally ‘impair the implied agreements’ between the Massachusetts Gaming Commission and the ones designers, who have paid millions in application fees towards the state. Continue reading “Massachusetts Anti-Casino Ballot Question Gets Nixed by State AG”