An Act To Amend the Laws Governing the Deadline and Conditions for Municipal Approval of a Second Racino and To Allow a Tribal Racino in Washington County
Maine Legislature, Session 125, LD 1203
Amends: 8 MRSA §275-A, 8 MRSA §1011, 8 MRSA §1020

Legislative Document 
No. 1203 
I.B. 2 
House of Representatives, March 21, 2011 
An Act To Amend the Laws Governing the Deadline and Conditions 
for Municipal Approval of a Second Racino and To Allow a Tribal 
Racino in Washington County 
Transmitted to the Clerk of the 125th Maine Legislature by the Secretary of State on  
March 17, 2011 and ordered printed. 
HEATHER J.R. PRIEST 
Clerk 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  8 MRSA §275-A, sub-§1, ¶A, as amended by PL 2003, c. 401, §10, is 
further amended to read: 
A.  If the population of the region is 300,000 or more, based on the 1990 U.S. 
Census, conducted racing on more than 100 days in each of the previous 2 calendar 
years, except that if a racetrack that qualifies as a commercial track under this 
paragraph ceases operation, a separate racetrack operated by the owner or operator of 
the racetrack that ceased operation qualifies as a commercial track, and for all 
purposes is considered the same commercial track as the track that ceased operation, 
if the population of the region of that separate racetrack is 300,000 or more, based on 
the 1990 U.S. Census, and the sum of the number of days on which racing was 
conducted at the track that ceased operation and the number of days on which racing 
was conducted at the separate racetrack equals at least 100 days in each of the 2 
preceding calendar years; or 
Sec. 2.  8 MRSA §275-A, sub-§1, ¶B, as amended by PL 2003, c. 401, §10, is 
further amended to read: 
B.   If the population of the region is less than 300,000, based on the 1990 U.S. 
Census, conducted racing on more than 25 days in each of the previous 2 calendar 
years, except that if a racetrack that qualifies as a commercial track under this 
paragraph ceases operation, a separate racetrack operated by the owner or operator of 
the racetrack that ceased operation qualifies as a commercial track, and for all 
purposes is considered the same commercial track as the track that ceased operation, 
if the population of the region of that separate racetrack is less than 300,000, based on 
the 1990 U.S. Census, and the sum of the number of days on which racing was 
conducted at the track that ceased operation and the number of days on which racing 
was conducted at the separate racetrack equals at least 26 days in each of the 2 
preceding calendar years.; or 
Sec. 3.  8 MRSA §275-A, sub-§1, ¶C is enacted to read: 
C.  Is owned and operated by one or more federally recognized Indian tribes located 
in this State, is located more than 90 miles from the nearest existing commercial track 
that operates slot machines, as defined in section 1001, subsection 39, is within 45 
miles of the operating tribe's Indian reservation as defined in Title 30, chapter 601 
and conducts racing on more than 25 days each calendar year after having been 
granted a license to conduct harness horse racing.  For the purposes of this paragraph, 
distance in miles is determined by measuring from the center of the commercial track 
along the most commonly used roadway as determined by the Department of 
Transportation. 
Sec. 4.  8 MRSA §1011, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 687, Pt. A, §5 and 
affected by Pt. B, §11, is amended to read: 
2.  Eligible persons.  The board may accept applications for a license to operate slot 
machines from any person who is licensed to operate a commercial track that satisfies the 
following criteria: 
A.  The commercial track is located at or within a 5-mile 25-mile radius of the center 
of a commercial track that conducted harness racing with pari-mutuel wagering on 
more than 25 days during calendar year 2002 or the track qualifies as a commercial 
track under section 275-A, subsection 1, paragraph C; and 
B.  The operation of slot machines at the commercial track is approved by the voters 
of the municipality in which the commercial track to be licensed is located by 
referendum election held at any time after December 31, 2002 and before December 
31, 2003 2013. 
Sec. 5.  8 MRSA §1011, sub-§6 is enacted to read: 
6.  License may not be denied on basis of proximity of track to other gambling 
facility.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, a license to operate slot 
machines at a commercial track may not be denied on the basis of the proximity of the 
commercial track to any other gambling facility if the commercial track was licensed and 
operating before the other gambling facility was licensed, unless the commercial track 
proposes to relocate or has relocated closer to the other gambling facility after the other 
gambling facility was licensed and operating. 
Sec. 6.  8 MRSA §1020, sub-§3, as amended by PL 2005, c. 663, §9, is further 
amended to read: 
3.  Limits on total slot machines.  The board shall determine the number of slot 
machines to be registered in the State.  The board shall make this determination based 
upon the minimum net slot machine income, when distributed pursuant to section 1036, 
necessary to maintain the harness horse racing industry in this State, except that: 
A.  The total number of slot machines registered in the State may not exceed 1,500; 
and 
B.  A slot machine operator may not operate more than 1,500 slot machines at any 
one commercial track. 
Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection, the board may allow an 
additional 1,500 slot machines to be registered for each commercial track at which slot 
machines were not operated prior to January 1, 2010 and at which the operation of slot 
machines is thereafter licensed. 
SUMMARY 
This initiated bill allows the Gambling Control Board within the Department of 
Public Safety to accept applications for a license to operate slot machines from any 
person who is licensed to operate a commercial track located at or within a 25-mile radius 
of the center of a commercial track that conducted harness racing with pari-mutuel 
wagering on more than 25 days during calendar year 2002 or from any person who is 
licensed to operate a commercial track that is owned and operated by one or more 
federally recognized Indian tribes located in this State if the operation of these slot 
machines is approved by the voters of the municipality in which the commercial track to 
be licensed is located by referendum held before December 31, 2013.  Current law 
requires the commercial track to be located at or within a 5-mile radius of the center of a 
commercial track that conducted harness racing with pari-mutuel wagering on more than 
days during calendar year 2002 and requires the referendum to have been held before 
December 31, 2003. 
The initiated bill changes the definition of "commercial track" to include a harness 
horse racing track licensed to conduct harness horse racing with pari-mutuel wagering 
that is owned and operated by one or more federally recognized Indian tribes located in 
this State, is located more than 90 miles from the nearest existing commercial track that 
operates slot machines, is within 45 miles of the operating tribe's Indian reservation and 
conducts racing on more than 25 days each calendar year after having been granted a 
license to conduct harness horse racing. 
The initiated bill provides that a license to operate slot machines at a commercial 
track may not be denied on the basis of the proximity of the commercial track to any 
other gambling facility if the commercial track was licensed and operating before the 
other gambling facility was licensed, unless the commercial track proposes to relocate or 
has relocated closer to the other gambling facility after the other facility was licensed and 
operating. 
The initiated bill permits the Gambling Control Board to allow an additional 1,500 
slot machines to be registered for each commercial track at which slot machines were not 
operated prior to January 1, 2010 and at which the operation of slot machines is licensed 
after January 1, 2010.  Current law limits the total number of slot machines registered in 
the State to 1,500.