Massachusetts Conferees Yet to Settle Historical Horse Racing Dispute

Massachusetts House and Senate negotiators have yet to settle whether historical horse racing machines will be part of the state's economic development bill, leaving the dispute open on 4 November 2026.

Historical horse racing (HHR) machines are electronic terminals that let players bet on previously run races. The state's casinos say they are essentially slot machines. The House wrote HHR wagering into its bill, the Senate balked, and a conference committee, the joint House-Senate panel that reconciles competing versions of a bill, has not announced a resolution.

Where the bill stands

The House passed the bill, H 5562 (printed as H.5576), on 8 July 2026 by 148 to 2. The Senate then replaced the House text with its own version and passed it on 24 July. The legislature's bill history records the rest of the sequence.

The House conferees are Michlewitz, Fiola and Soter. The Senate conferees are Finegold, Rodrigues and Durant. According to The Boston Globe, the HHR language is a major sticking point in their talks.

What the House added

The House package included a gambling expansion that would let simulcast centers take bets on historical horse races on electronic terminals and via smartphones, according to WBUR. The machines would sit with simulcast and track licensees under track-betting rules rather than under casino licenses, which is why the casinos see the measure as a competitive threat rather than a licensing question.

The casinos put that position in writing on 19 October 2026. Their letter to legislators urged them to keep the provision out of the final bill, citing "adverse impacts" on their operations.

Two forecasts, opposite conclusions

The fight now turns on revenue modeling. Each side points to a study that supports its case.

Suffolk Downs was a horse track and Raynham a dog track, so the sites sit at the center of the licensing mechanics lawmakers must decide. The two studies model different scenarios and come from parties with a stake in the outcome, which leaves legislators without a neutral estimate to rely on.

Market pressure and what to watch

The Globe reports that revenue from the state's gambling market has flattened since the three casinos opened, and that competition has grown from New Hampshire casinos that already operate HHR machines. That backdrop explains why both camps frame the issue as a question of where Massachusetts gambling dollars go. Earlier Gamingo coverage of Massachusetts casino and betting revenue reaching $157.3M shows how much of that market the casinos and sports betting operators now share.

HHR has been contested elsewhere too. Minnesota lawmakers advanced a bill to ban historical horse racing machines in 2024, a reminder that the machines draw resistance wherever they are proposed.

For operators and suppliers, the revenue question in Massachusetts is broader than HHR. Lawmakers have also weighed online casino legalization and, as Massachusetts eyed a 51% online betting tax in 2025, the rate at which new products are taxed. The iLottery launch delay to 2026 added another digital channel to the state's competitive mix.

Three outcomes are possible from the conference committee:

• The HHR language is dropped, as the Senate prefers.
• The House provision survives in full.
• Negotiators narrow it, for example by changing the locations or the smartphone element.

Until conferees report a compromise, the House-passed provision remains a proposal and the Senate's version stands as the other side of the negotiation.

Status reviewed on 4 November 2026. Bill dates and votes come from the Massachusetts General Court bill history, and the forecasts and casino letter from The Boston Globe and WBUR reporting. More regulation news and North America coverage.