Gambling Plan Clears One Hurdle - 2004-01-27
Backers of an initiative that would bring slot machines to some racetracks and card rooms got approval by the state attorney general's office Monday to start collecting signatures to put the issue before voters in November. Monday's approval of a title and summary for the proposed constitutional amendment caps a flurry of recent activity in what has become California's threering casino circus.

Last week, a coalition of Indian casino tribes began negotiations with the Schwarzenegger administration over new compacts between the state and the tribes. And a wealthy and influential Southern California tribe announced it was sponsoring an initiative of its own that would greatly expand the scope of Indian casinos.
Read the full story at GamblingMagazine.com

Study finds Rhode Islanders, Bay State residents spend big cash at Conn. casinos - 2004-01-27
Gamblers from Rhode Island and Massachusetts drop over $1.1 billion yearly at the Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun casinos in Connecticut, a new study revealed Monday.

According to Professor Clyde W. Barrow from the Center for Policy Analysis at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, Bay State residents spent $829 million at the two casinos in 2003, while Rhode Islanders spent at least $301 million. On slot machines alone, Barrow found, Massachusetts residents spent $466 million and Ocean State gamblers $169 million as part of the nearly $1.6 billion the Indian casinos collected in combined slot revenues.
Read the full story at Pawtucket Times