Right you are. We apologize for the goof. Maine has, at present, but one casino. Our yardstick for something being deemed a casino is the presence of a significant number of Class II or Class III slot machines. If there are table games where you play against the house (as opposed to playing against other patrons, as is the case with card rooms) that also qualifies for "casino" status.
In the last seven years, Maine voters have rejected three of the four casino proposals that have made it onto the ballot. Only Penn National's Hollywood Slots has passed muster with the electorate. An Oxford County casino plan was rebuffed in the '08 election but Black Bear Entertainment is trying to get a new casino-resort proposal onto the 2010 ballot. Already 90,000 signatures have been submitted to the Maine Secretary of State's office. From there, if the petitions are validated, the matter goes to the Legislature, which is expected to turn Black Bear down.
Even if legislators prove sympathetic, a veto by Gov. John Baldacci seems likely. A rejection by the Legislature or governor would then put the decision in the lap of the electorate. Since the 2008 proposal included an ill-received provision to lower the state's legal gambling age to 18 -- a miscalculation that Black Bear has promised not to repeat -- the 2010 version promises to fare slightly better. Whether "slightly" is enough remains to be seen.
