Casino-style gambling yielded record revenue in December

Massachusetts took in more in taxes and fees from casino-style gambling in December than in any other month on record, counting more than $28.76 million in revenue from last month's gambling activity at Plainridge Park Casino, MGM Springfield and Encore Boston Harbor, the Gaming Commission reported Tuesday.

The three gambling centers generated a cumulative $103 million in gross gaming revenue in December, consisting of a record high of about $68.46 million at Encore in Everett, $22.47 million at MGM Springfield and $12.31 million at Plainville's Plainridge slots parlor. The December haul translated to $28,764,744.94 in state revenue — the highest monthly total on record, surpassing the previous record of $28,626,223.98 set in March 2022.

Encore and MGM are each taxed at a rate of 25 percent of gross gaming revenue and the money collected is split into buckets, like local aid, the Transportation Infrastructure Fund, and an education fund. For Encore, that meant a state tax hit of just more than $17.11 million last month. MGM Springfield's performance meant a state tax liability of nearly $5.62 million.

Plainridge Park Casino's December results worked out to just more than $6 million in taxes and fees for the state. Plainridge Park pays a 49 percent tax on its gross gaming revenue, with 82 percent of what is collected earmarked for local aid and the remaining 18 percent allotted to the state's Race Horse Development Fund.

Massachusetts has become increasingly accustomed in recent years to revenue generated from gambling activity. Since Plainridge opened in June 2015, Massachusetts has collected just shy of $1.29 billion from casino-style gambling and has averaged about $23.25 million in revenue each month since Encore opened in June 2019.

Starting at the end of this month, Massachusetts will begin to see revenue from legal sports betting. Estimates for annual revenue from wagering have ranged from $35 million to more than $60 million.