Maine Casinos and Gambling

Short Summary: Maine is a pretty moderate state in most regards, and gambling is no exception. While the state is home to two land casinos which can offer the full range of gambling options (with exception to sports betting) and one racetrack, it seems that they are quite satisfied not to expand beyond that. There is a sports betting bill (which would also allow online betting) before the Legislature as of 2019, but it’s hard to say whether or not that will pass. There is currently no regulated online casino gambling and no current bill before the Legislature to authorize same.

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Maine tends to run somewhat in the middle-of-the-road politically but takes a more cautious approach when it comes to its gambling offerings. At this time, there are only two commercial casinos operating within the state, both of which are fairly small. Additionally, there is one racetrack (the other operates as a commercial casino, as well) that conducts live racing as well as pari-mutuel (simulcast) wagering.

In terms of online gambling, Maine is one of several states in which it does not appear to be illegal to be acting in the capacity of a mere player, however, there are penalties prescribed for those who operate online casinos. Any such violations would fall under the purview of, “Unlawful Gambling,” for operators, but almost certainly no online casinos are operating out of the state. As always, any online casinos based outside the US are out of Maine’s jurisdictional reach.

In terms of Charitable Gaming, the State of Maine is actually fairly specific in its regulations and enforcement thereof, which can be seen in part here.

For those of you wondering what, “Beano,” is, Beano is just what Bingo used to be called when the game was first developed. The reason why is because the game was typically conducted at fairs and carnivals and beans were used to mark a player’s numbers.

In terms of the state’s take from Charitable Gaming, it would appear that the only cut the state gets comes in the form of any licensing fees, as well as any fines that may be levied for violations. It does not appear that the state takes a cut of any Charitable Gaming revenues on direct. In addition to Bingo, nonprofits are also permitted to conduct raffles and card games of chance (max bet $1) as long as they have the proper licensing.

Maine also offers a state lottery and participates in the national Powerball and Mega Millions lotteries. The results of the Fiscal Year 2018 Lottery Report for the state are available and can be found here.

Total lottery sales were $294,133,693, of which 76% were instant (scratch-off) ticket sales with drawing type lottery games comprising the difference. Of these sales, there were $192,535,536 in winnings, for an overall lottery return of roughly 65.5% return to player. If this seems high compared to other state lotteries, that’s because it is, but the clearly identifiable reason is the high percentage of instant tickets sold compared to drawing tickets.

Instant tickets paid out $155,673,162 against $223,524,517 in sales, which is an overall return to player of about 69.64%. Much like slot machines in land casinos (at least, typically) the higher denomination tickets have a better return-to-player, but don’t get too excited, it’s still well under 80% RTP for a $25 ticket. Again, as with casinos, the worst returning games are those with huge Variance coming by way of super high jackpots, for example, the return on all Powerball tickets sold in the state for the year was just under 50%.

Based on a population of about 1.338M in 2018, lottery sales came out to roughly $219.83/resident for FY 2018. Given the fact that there are only two proper land casinos in the state, especially given the state’s size, this should hardly come as a surprise.

Finally, there is one horse racetrack in Maine that is tied to a land casino as well as one racetrack that is not. Greyhound racing is not legal in the State of Maine.

The Legality Of Online Gambling In Maine

UPDATE (December, 2023): While online casinos are still not regulated in the State of Maine, online sportsbooks have actually been regulated for about a year. Originally, the state wanted a 51% cut of the action and didn’t want to grant exclusivity, which might have put operators off. Since then, Caesars Sportsbooks and DraftKings Sportsbook have both entered the online sports betting market, with both sites going live in early November, 2023. The state reduced its tax rate on sports betting revenues to a much more reasonable 10%.

Update (Dec 22): As we mentioned, there was a bill at the time of the previous writing to authorize sportsbooks in the State of Maine, but the state wanted a 25% cut of the action. While this isn’t the 51% that Arkansas demands of its (few) operators, we expect that some of the major websites are not going to want to operate in Maine due to both the limited population AND the fact that accepting a 25% haircut would signal to other states that they are willing to live with higher taxes on revenues.

Since then, according to the Press Herald, a sports betting bill has passed within the state authorizing both retail (read: physical) sports betting as well as online wagering, which is to be conducted through the state’s tribes. Assuming that any extant online sportsbooks want to enter the market, they will probably only need to sign a deal with the Tribe to do so.

For whatever reason, Maine predicts that it will be several months, perhaps as late as 2024, before any of these sites go live. The State of Maine, perhaps wisely, reduced the percentage of revenues that they will receive from 25% to 10%, which I think will make it more likely that they attract operators. Quoting, in part:

Champion estimates the state’s annual cut of sports betting – set in the law at 10 percent of gross revenues after payouts to bettors – will be $3.8 million to $6 million. The tribes would get 50 percent or more of the online revenues, with “providers” such as Draft Kings or FanDuel receiving up to 30-40 percent for hosting mobile apps where bettors place wagers. In addition, 0.25 percent of the gross revenue will go toward federal taxes.
New Hampshire, which has had sports betting since December 2019, brought in $16.7 million last year, but receives roughly 50 percent of all sports betting revenues. The cut that states take from sports betting ranges widely, from 6.75 percent in Iowa and Nevada, to 51 percent in Rhode Island and 50 percent in Delaware.

I think that’s a good idea because the major online sportsbooks are not going to want to signal that they are willing to take a 25% haircut as many states are imposing a significantly lower tax than that, and as a result, would possibly decide to increase those taxes. Right or wrong, Maine is not so important that the major sportsbooks would want to risk that as states such as Pennsylvania have much larger populations, so the net revenue haircut would be huge.

This article also mentions Rhode Island and Delaware, but that’s not exactly an apples-for-apples comparison as both of those states allow for online casino-style games, which is going to be more attractive to operators than only offering sports betting. In other states offering both, the taxation on the casino product is sometimes more than that of sports betting net revenues.

In the meantime, licensing and regulation for online casino products, as well as online poker, has not recently been on the table in Maine, much less have any such bills actually went to vote.

We expect Maine will eventually authorize online casinos in the state, but given that they did not tie it to the online sports betting bill, we expect that it could take awhile. Eventually, we would expect that Maine sees the money pouring into other states, via online casinos, and will decide they want a piece of that.

In the meantime, there are many offshore online casinos that offer their products to residents of Maine, so feel free to check out our top picks in the section above!

There is no legalized and regulated form of online gambling in Maine at this time, nor does it appear that there is any current legislation to advance online casinos. The closest legislation on the table right now.

Would authorize both retail and online sports betting to take place in the state for those licensed. It would also enable tribes to operate sports betting as an online-only operation, but there is no provision in the bill for poker, slots or other casino games.

Further, the current bill seems to want to cut out 25% of all sports betting revenues as well as proscribing licensing fees of $30,000 or $15,000, depending on the type of license (new or renewal). The tax of 25% is pretty steep compared to other states, especially for any locations whose only mode of gambling is the sports betting.

In comparison, New Jersey levies a tax of only 9.75% on sports betting handle for live sportsbooks as well as a tax of 13% for online betting. It’s important to keep in mind also that any entities that offer sports betting in the State of New Jersey also have other forms of casino gambling or are located at racetracks.

While there are no online casinos licensed and regulated by the state, there is nothing that we could find in Maine law that would seem to penalize individuals for playing online in the capacity of a player, as opposed to an operator.

Land Casinos In Maine

Maine is home to two land casinos as well as two other land locations that offer some form of gambling. In addition to the casinos, one Indian Tribe (Penobscot) once conducted a high-stakes (unlimited prize value) bingo facility and there is one racetrack that does not offer casino gambling. Let’s delve into these four locations:

Oxford Casino Hotel

The Oxford Casino Hotel is located, appropriately enough, in Oxford, Maine. As with the Hollywood Casino, it is fairly limited in both size and scope as the state wishes to keep gambling operations somewhat contained. This property consists of only 27,000 square feet of gaming space, has fewer than 1,000 slot and video poker machines as well as 28 gaming tables. The hotel consists of 107 rooms and suites.

Obviously, this puts this casino in the realm of a locals/staycation type of place rather than a destination casino, which is what Maine intended.

The casino was originally owned by Black Bear Development and was to be known as the Black Bear Four Season Hotel and Casino (that’s a mouthful!), but they would later sell it to its current owners, Churchill Downs Inc.

Given the limited size of the casino, the property features a surprising array of table games, including: Blackjack, Craps, Roulette, Mini-Baccarat, Three-Card Poker, Spanish 21, Mississippi Stud, Ultimate Texas Hold ‘Em and Crazy Four Poker. It is highly unlikely that all of these different games operate around the clock, so we strongly recommend calling in advance to determine the typical hours of your game of choice if you are planning a visit here. This casino is not home to a live poker room.

This venue is home to three dining establishments, the Ox Pub, Oxford Express and Oxford Grill. It almost makes one wonder if this town has a legal requirement that everything be preceded with some variation of, “Oxford.” The Oxford Express is something of a quick eats place whereas the Oxford Grill is a sit-down restaurant probably about upper-casual.

Hollywood Casino Bangor

The Hollywood Casino Bangor is Maine’s Northern Casino and is located in the home of Stephen King, Bangor, Maine. The hotel features 148 guest rooms, four suites and a gym.

This property is home to roughly 800 combined video poker, video keno and slot machines. In addition, this establishment houses the state’s only live poker room, which consists of four tables. Their website states that they deal No Limit Texas Hold ‘Em, Limit Texas Hold ‘Em, Omaha and Seven-Card Stud based on player demand. The website states that it is open from 10a-3a, but if it is anything like other local casinos around the country, don’t be surprised to come in late and find it closed because there were no players at the time…particularly weekdays.

The property also features a table games pit consisting of Blackjack, Craps, Roulette, High Card Flush and Three-Card Poker. We recommend calling ahead for usual times of table operation for anything aside from Blackjack. For example, as of the time of this writing, their website says that Craps is offered from 11a-3a.

This establishment is home to three eateries, which consist of the Epic Buffet, the Take 2 Snack Bar and the Hops House 99, which is a bar that serves traditional (American) pub food.

Aesthetically, if you’ve seen one Hollywood Casino, then you’ve kind of seen them all and this falls into that mold.

As with most Hollywood Casinos, the players club for this one is MyChoice and Marquee Rewards. This property is also the home of Bangor Raceway and hosts live harness racing from May to November as well as year-round simulcast betting.

Scarborough Downs

Scarborough Downs is the horse racetrack located in Scarborough, Maine, which conducts live harness racing from March-December. The live racing takes place, for the most part, on Saturdays and Sundays, but also occasionally on Thursdays during the Summer. The full schedule can be found here.

Aside from that, Simulcast Wagering is available year round.

Penobscot High Stakes Bingo

Since this is a recent development, we will list Penobscot High Stakes Bingo, though it closed in late 2018.

This property may have survived if it could have had a casino, but unfortunately, the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act prevents the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (Federal Act) from applying in the state because part of the Maine Act subjects the tribes to Maine State Law. The result was the four tribes were permitted to house high-stakes bingo facilities, but only one ever did and now it is closed. Most likely too much business going to the casinos proper.

Lottery

Residents of Maine have a wide range of lottery options. The state runs their own lottery offering draw games and instant tickets and they also sell the multiple state lottery tickets for the Powerball and Mega Millions. The Maine lottery sold their first tickets in 1974 and has been selling lottery tickets continuously since then.

Maine Poker

Maine Poker Maine doesn’t have any legal standalone poker rooms in the state. The only poker room I’m aware of is at the Hollywood Casino Hotel and Raceway, and it only has a few tables. I’m sure you can find home games and underground games around the larger cities, just like in every other state, but these all come with a few drawbacks.

Even though most states don’t spend a great deal of time trying to bust up poker games, it is an illegal activity and can land you in hot water if you’re caught. The other thing you need to think about is the safety of the game and the fact that if the game isn’t regulated who can you turn to if you get cheated or taken advantage of?

Sports Betting in Maine

Maine doesn’t have any legal form of sports betting anywhere in the state. You can’t legally place a bet on sports at any of the casinos or racetracks in the state or with a local bookmaker.

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Maine Bingo

Maine allows some charitable organizations to conduct bingo and beano games. Beano is one of the older names for a game of bingo, so for most purposes, the two terms mean the same thing.

Organizations must apply for and receive a license from the state before conducting beano or bingo games. The following organizations may apply for a license.

Veteran’s clubs and organizations
Religious groups
Fraternal groups
Educational groups
Civic organizations
Fire departments
Political groups
Agricultural groups

All organizations must operate as a nonprofit business and have been in existence for at least two years.

The state has considered legalizing other forms of charitable gaming, including poker tournaments and poker nights, but haven’t passed anything into law at this time.

The laws are specific about how the organization must use any proceeds from charitable gaming and what percentage must go toward charitable endeavors.

The Native American Indian bingo hall listed in the first section above doesn’t operate under the same regulations as charitable gaming. Like in most states with a Native American Indian population, the laws are different for them than any other people or business located in the state.

Slot Machine Ownership

Maine residents may legally own slot machines. Unlike many states, in Maine, you can own machines manufactured in any year, not just antiques. Slot machines may only be used for personal entertainment and display in collections, not for any form of gambling or commercial use.

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Conclusion And Prognosis

Maine is a very middle-of-the-road type state and the gambling laws are no exception. The state is not opposed to gambling, per se, but both the State Legislature as well as Maine voters (who were responsible for the passage of two casino referendums and failure of one) want to keep things pretty well in check. This is true both in terms of the number of casinos as well as their sizes.

We imagine the state will legalize and regulate online casino gambling at some point in time, but it could be several years down the line. In the meantime, there is a sports betting bill currently before the Legislature that would allow both physical and online sports betting, but we think that is probably kind of a coin flip to pass this year.