Public Hearing Scheduled on Massachusetts Slots Parlor Ballot Question

Massachusetts lawmakers have scheduled a public hearing on a proposed ballot question that would let the state issue a second slots parlor license.

The bill will be heard before the Legislature's Committee on Economic Development at noon Monday at the Venture Development Center at the University of Massachusetts-Boston.

The question says the slots parlor must be located near a horse race track.

There are two horse race tracks in the state: Suffolk Downs, in Boston, and Plainridge Racecourse, in Plainville.

Plainville is already the site of a slots parlor created under a 2011 law that legalized casino gambling in Massachusetts.

The law authorized the licensing of three casinos and a single slots parlor.

The question will likely head to the November ballot if lawmakers fail to act.