 Okay, and we're good. Good morning. This is the meeting of the master this gaming commission and we're meeting purchase. So I'll take a little call. Good morning commissioner Hill. Good morning. I'm here. Good morning commissioner. Oh, Brian, I normally start with you. My apologies. That's okay. Being in the car parking and parking lot makes it a little harder to see me. I am here though. Thank you. And commissioner Maynard the morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning, Madam chair. I'm joining you from plain Ridge Park casino. That's great. And we're looking forward to your report. And I think. I lean you've been out at. Encour. Yes. She nods her head and. And commissioner Hill, you're out at. I am out at MGM. It's wonderful. Thank you. And thanks for your good work this morning. one day from what we expected to be launch day for our sports wagering. Good morning, Executive Director Wells and you are at MGM as well. Yes, good morning from Springfield. So do you have any update for us, Karen? So the general update is that we are all working towards the operation certificate and the launch for tomorrow. The commissioners are all the three commissions that were signed to each casino have all been through the properties. I would like to say a big thank you to GLI for working on the internal controls. I know we are right now, we're done with two. One is being finalized as we speak, but this took a lot of work. And I know that the team from GLI has been incredibly busy. They worked through the weekend and I'm just very grateful that they agreed to take on this project for us because we could not have done it independently without them. So they also really did a thorough job. They were not just checking the box. Oh, you submitted some kind of internal control on X regulation. They really looked at it. So they have a lot of credibility for a good reason. So thank you to Kevin and your team for all your work on that. I really want to just communicate that publicly because it's been rough. It's been a lot of work in a short period of time. Yeah, thank you, Karen. Kevin. Okay. So, Kevin, did you want to add anything? No, we're grateful for the opportunity. We love seeing you succeed and we've got team members that will be there tomorrow. Joe Bonaventhe and Gabe who have done a ton of work on this project and Karen's right. People were working over the weekend and it's really a very satisfying and we were just happy to be able to help out. And your team has been great to work with. So it makes it all the more enjoyable. Excellent. Excellent. The only other matter for the administrative update I was going to turn it over to Director Van Der Linden for an update on the RG side. Good afternoon, Chairman Jed Stein and commissioners. Just a quick update about where things stand. So the voluntary self-expulsion is live as required by statute. We're accepting applications for individuals who wish to enroll in the sports wagering specific voluntary self-exclusion program. On the game sense side, working behind the scenes now for several months even in advance in the sports wagering act passing the game sense team has been attending a number of trainings and in some case been providing training specific to responsible gaming and sports wagering. And so at this point, every game sense advisor at each of the casinos has been thoroughly trained on how to talk about sports wagering with patrons how to understand what sports wagering is and placing bets and they are fully prepared. In advance of tomorrow, they're gonna be fully staffed. They will have some additional staff for the launch when things go live tomorrow. I know a few of you have seen them. They have new uniforms that have very much a sports theme to them but still keep the game sense flare to it. And so they'll be wearing those throughout. We have sports wagering RG swag and brochures that have been developed and they'll be ready to receive patrons who are wanting to place bets tomorrow. And then finally, we've been the requirement for each licensee to provide a problem gambling plan with the advice of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Each licensee has submitted a problem gambling plan. I have shared that with the Department of Public Health that they've provided feedback. I'm happy to report that each of licensee's plan is sufficient for the launch. There will be a few small details that we'll continue to work with them over time as we know more, as they know more, we'll continue to evolve these plans to make sure that they're responsive to the needs of patrons in Massachusetts. So that's it. Any questions for Mark? We did see when Commissioner Hill and I were on the floor, we did see the new game sense jerseys for sports wagering and they look great. They do look great. And I just had one question. Is there any significance to the number 421 that is on the back of all of this shirt? 421. I'm so glad you asked that, Commissioner Hill. 421 are the numbers for the lower risk gambling guidelines. And we don't specifically call it out. It's meant to be there for people to ask that very question. So 421 is, oh geez, the number, so one is the percentage of your gross annual income that you should consider as a form of entertainment if you choose to gamble. Two is the number of types of gambling that you would engage in. We don't want to engage in more than two types of gambling. So if that's sports wagering, it may also be casino games or lottery or some other form. And four is the number of days per month that you should consider gambling in your form of entertainment. Thank you. And the uniforms are awesome. If you haven't seen them, they're like referee shirts and they're green and black and they were superb. We loved them. I wanted one, but I don't think I could fit into any of them. Well, we saw them without a person in them just held up. I bet they look great on the game sense advisor. So very, very, very smart and clever. And the 421 is looks both sporting and betting. So it's very, very clever. They were designed by one of our game sense advisors. Very nice. Not shocking, they're a great group. All right, so we'll get to the next item on the agenda unless people have questions from our, also. All right, Karen now returning to the certificate of operations approval under item number three. Yes, so my recommendation here is we run through them one by one with starting with PPC and MGM. And we'll see if EVH is ready at this point. But Bruce, if you want to just sort of go through PPC that they have applied with each section required under 251 and then go to MGM. And then Crystal, you can share your screen. So sort of walk through that for the commissioners with the PowerPoint. That may make things a little smoother and make sure the commissioners understand that all the requirements have been met. Does that make sense, Bruce? You're on mute. There we go. Okay, great. Sorry, do you want me to share it while he's talking or after? I couldn't. What do you think, Bruce? I think while he's talking. I don't want to confuse anyone but I want to be on the same page. Yeah, let's see how it goes too. Let's see how it goes with sharing it, Bruce, right? Yeah, yeah, that's fine. She can share it while I speak. Great, thank you. Just one second. I have one tiny edit that I noticed in before us. And you wanted to start with PPC, you said? What do you think, Bruce? I'll leave it to you. That's fine. Well, give me one second to reorder and we can do that. Slides are so flexible. You gotta love that. Okay. The PPC MGM and then move on. I think we're in good shape here. Okay, I will share. You know, I'm thinking, Bruce, we also may want to start with Commissioner Maynard if he had any concerns or last-minute comments because he is at the property and did get a chance to go review what's going on on site. Sure. Mr. Maynard, how did you enjoy your tour this morning at PPC? Everything go well? Do you have any concerns? Oh, thank you, Bruce, and thank you, Karen. I just want to thank Andrew Steffen for letting me use his office. I appreciate it. Sturl and Andrew took me around the property, met with North and some other folks from the team, got to look at the cage, got to look at the software and also the kiosks. It was a great presentation. I had no concerns. It looks to me at this point, pending anything you tell me, Bruce, that PPC was in really, really solid shape. Okay. Well, I will go over our observations of PPC here in a minute. Let me see. I can't really see, Christian. Yeah, I've been scared yet. I just wanted to make sure you were ready. Yeah, I'm ready. Okay. Didn't want to cover Jordan's face. Yeah. All right, screen two here. And should be. Okay. Sorry, balancing. I read that. Oops. So I have two computers moving at once, so you're good now. Okay, the first thing that I have on our checklist is whether they requested a certificate of operation, which PPC had, which one are you on here? Maybe we're not in sync here. Hey, Rich, Mark Casino. Do you see that, Bruce, on your screen? Yeah, yep. So shoot, yeah. Yeah, I got it right here. Requested certificate of operation on January 13th. They did. On, for pending issuance of certificate of operation, will be posted in the sports book cage. GLI has to the next screen. Is it showing small? I have a full screen here. Okay. Yeah. Hold on. Wait. Okay. Yeah, no. Yeah, there we go. GLI's reviewed, PPC's internal controls, and they are all in compliance. They received the list of all the sports wagering employees and vendors and non-sports wagering vendors. They have gotten their emergency response plans certified delivery to police departments and fire departments. The certificate of occupancy and necessary permits were received on January 1st. Then the conditional upon Plain Ridge Park completing operational audits, that was one of the conditions placed on them of wagering procedures, practices and technical security controls as required by the commission's technical standards, governing supporting wagering and within 90 days of commencements of sports wagering operations. And Bruce, that had been a recommendation by GLI. I don't know if Kevin, you want to comment on that, but that was a recommendation. That's not something you would test beforehand that you really want that testing and that audit to take place after they're in operation. So I know Kevin, if you want to comment on that, that's a general best practice, correct? Yes, that's been the standard practice that we think has worked quite well. The logic behind it is that you don't want to test these in a theoretical or a test environment. You want to test the security in live environment when it's actually operating and you want to observe and review the internal controls when they're actually being executed by the employees. It's one thing what it says on paper, but it's another thing to observe what they're actually doing. And so we think that that has proven to be very effective method of risk control and that's what we've recommended here. So my understanding is the recommendation is that that be a condition on the operation certificate, correct Kevin? Correct, and it's in the regulations as well. Great, thank you. So second director Wells before Bruce continues, just as a reminder to the public, I believe there's also an associated memo that director band has prepared and this is a PowerPoint to go through the checklist. So Bruce, your summary that you're going through is your checklist on accordance with the regulation that the commission promulgated. I think just to go back on this list, item C, you might have just skipped over, but that's with respect to the actual physical facility. How do you feel about that? Item C, let me just go back on my list. Yes, that's the sportsways you've been built in the first quality. Yes, all, yes, they have top quality. Great, thank you. Then we can go to the next one. Thank you. An evaluation of the test period was done on January 19th and it passed all excess. Excellent. Commissioner, is there any questions on PPC for director band and commissioner Maynard? I guess I'm just, yeah. Okay, wanna continue? Okay, go to MGM next. There you are. Okay, MGM Springfield. They requested their certificate of operation on January 13th. Pending the certificate of operation would be posted at the sportsbook cage. GLI reviewed MGM's submission, determined them to be in compliance. Current, we received their current list of sports wagering employees, sports wagering vendors and non sports wagering vendors and they're with our licensing department. Sports wagering facility is built to superior quality and in compliance. The emergency response plan certificate delivery is on file with the police and fire departments as of January 9th. Certificate of occupancy and necessary permits were received August 5th, 2022. The condition of MGM Springfields, completing operational audits and wagering procedures and practices and technical security controls as required by the commission's technical standards, governing sports wagering within 90 days of commencements of sports wagering operations. Next screen, the evaluation and test period was completed on January 18th, 2023 and was completed to be satisfactory. Any questions? Any questions? Maybe we can turn to Commissioner Hill. Have you had a chance to gain any impressions? Do you wanna share with us, Brad? Sure. So I wanna also thank the crew here at MGM. I'm not gonna mention any names because I'm gonna forget somebody, but we had a nice crew downstairs and we toured the area where the sports betting will be taking place. We got to go into a kiosk. We were able to take some bets and the test went very, very well. We were able to open up the kiosk, see the inner workings of it. And again, everything was great. I was concerned on a couple of things. I shouldn't say concerned. I wanted to see our RG messaging, our responsible gaming. And when the kiosk came on, immediately right on the screen at the bottom, there was RG messaging and right on the machine itself, outside of it, there were two RG messaging platforms that you could look at. So I was very happy with the messaging that MGM has set up for responsible gaming. We then toured the floor of gaming so we could see where some of the kiosks were placed so people could go out throughout the casino. Very happy with the placement of the kiosk on the floor. And again, right near game sense. And that's how we were able to go and visit there today and see those beautiful new shirts. We then ended up at the cage. And oh, and by the way, on the kiosks, when you hit the screen in order to start your betting, you immediately brings you to a screen that helps you learn how to bet so that you can do it responsibly, but also the rules were right there for you. And when you hit the button, as clear as day the rules on sports betting. I know that was something that we were concerned about and very happy to see the rules were very, very easy to get to on the kiosk. So we ended our tour back at the cage and we were able to do some betting there as well. And the staff there was just great in everything they were doing. And again, I wanted to bring up the, make sure that there was responsible gaming messaging going on and they got a pamphlet set out there so people will see it. And on the back of each betting slip there was language for it as well. So I'm very, very happy with the messaging that's gonna be out there for responsible gaming. We were able to place the bet, everything went great. I pretended as though I made a mistake and they were able to void my bet and they showed me how that all works. So very, very happy with everything that we saw here at MGM and looking forward to tomorrow's kickoff. Thanks commissioner. So questions for director band or commissioner Hill with respect to MGM Springfield. Karen, do you have anything to add? No, I think my recommendation is that the commission could vote on PPC and MGM. The recommendation is to approve the operation certificate with the condition that was outlined in that section F on the PowerPoint slide. And then we could then go to the next agenda item we'll circle back and see if EBH is ready or if we need to put the meeting on hold while we wait for that information. So just an update on Corbassen Harbor there's still some work that's underway. Correct. Okay. So director Bammel will just pause for a moment on Crystal's PowerPoint that assisted you this afternoon. And then the memo as I understand it will be in the public packet and we'll turn to council Grossman for an update on his matter regarding the tax liability and child support issues that we addressed on Friday. And then we'll circle back to on court the very least I want to hear from commissioner Brian and then we'll turn back to see where EBH is. Okay. Thanks. Good afternoon, Todd. Good afternoon. So the MOU updates are still a work in progress. They have been in communication with the department of revenue and they are working on the edits to all three we've made all three licensees aware and to be on the lookout for these. The changes are relatively straightforward as in pertain largely to just incorporating sector 23 end requirements and include for example updates to the definition of intercept threshold which is the level at which the intercept inquiry has to be performed. So it hasn't been completed yet. I don't have any reason to believe that it won't be done by the end of the day but it's not, the drafts have not been circulated to the licensees as juncture since they haven't been completed yet. That's where we are with that. The second part of it is just ensuring that the kiosks themselves are set to recognize the taxable event. And I understand that they are but that's the other thing to double check and to make sure that the staff is, the licensee staff is aware of this requirement and ensure that they perform the checks that will be discussed in the MOUs. So that's where we are at the moment. Again, it appears like we can get this done by the end of the day, but it hasn't been completed yet. Second, Director Wallace. Yeah, so my recommendation, obviously needs to get done today or before tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. So my recommendation is that be placed as a condition on the vote and that we get that done today. Well, so the MOU, we've seen the drafts we've seen the completed versions of for gaming. Commissioners have wanted to see the MOU that would be executed. Sounds like that's underway, but not yet, has not yet been received by either our legal team or the licensees. So let's just put that one in the parking lot. Let's go to the more, the technical issue. And we have Councilor Mulally. I'll use your legal term. We have Kevin from GLI who did indicate on Friday that the kiosk were ready to go. So should we clarify the technical side? Now, Karen, to the extent it can be clarified. Yes, the change which involved a minor addition of a zero to a liability limit for the operator. We're not on this? No, we're not on that issue. That issue isn't before us. My understanding of that issue has been resolved by change management stuff. The issue that's before us right now is the issue of whether the kiosk are prepared to address the tax liability and the child support which we addressed on Friday. And I thought Kevin, you said that the technology is ready and that the thresholds are in place. Yes, that's what I'm told, yeah. I can confirm. I also spoke with Sterl last week and based on that conversation, it seems like it's all in place. Yeah, and that would be for all three properties. I believe so, yes. So it seems as though we have to probably put this meeting a bit on a pause because we're waiting for Encore Boston Harbor with respect to some work. It's working with you, Kevin and GLI on, is that right? My recommendation, commissioners, is that we also ask that with respect to the tax and child support issues that we get some certainty around that because I believe we have to be in compliance tomorrow to launch in order to collect those liabilities and we wanna make sure that that is all ready for all three properties. Commissioner O'Brien, you're nodding your head. I'll let you weigh in here. No, I agree with the process that you just talked about. It seems like the approach we need to take today. Okay, Commissioner Hill, are you in agreement? I'm fine with that, Madam Chair. And then Commissioner Maynard. I'm fine with that. I do wanna point out, and this of course needs to be looked at by the MGC team, but I did have the opportunity to ask about the child support and the tax issues and they assured me that they will assure the MGC team that they can take care of that. Excellent, so that they could have full compliance. That's what was really relayed to us on Friday. So I took a lot of comfort in that, but I guess we just wanna have a certainty with our team, right? So that's great. Thank you, Commissioner Maynard. I totally agree. Excellent. So before we go back to the process, I do wanna have Commissioner O'Brien weigh in on her morning, if you would like. And then we can also circle back when on course ready. Sure, so I was a little bit of a round bug today since I was there for the launch, the soft launch of the casino itself. So I met with Lewis Christian, the game sense team, walked around with Jackie Crumb and Tom Coffey, the head of security. And they showed me where all the different kiosks are gonna be, we did not do a mock bet. Lewis kind of walked through how they had done it earlier, hadn't had any issues with it. They have a particular area upstairs where their giveaway section is, where they have a number of kiosks that they're hoping to send people who are maybe newer to the experience. And they will, similar to what Commissioner Hill said, they are going to have a number of game sense, pamphlets, personnel and presence up there as well, particularly that those are people who maybe need some more guidance and information to get into this. We looked at the cage, we looked at the sports bar, you know, an interesting thing to note about the cage is they did a test on sports wagering to see if people could transfer over into that area. And they have a large number of women who are going to be at the cage in the sports bar area, which was an interesting thing to see. And I did go down to the B1 parking garage and it is done very well. They've taken what used to be almost like the VIP area and had it sort of an easy in-out right by the entrance. There was one matter outside that's been wired for ATMs. There's probably gonna have to be some movement there in terms of measurement out from what has been redefined as the edges of the gaming establishment. There's nothing there at the moment. It's not an issue for launch at all, but something that may or may not come back before us given the layout that they go forward with. But everybody was getting ready and we wait on what needs to be done with GLI, et cetera. But in terms of what I saw on my end, everything was fine, it was good to go. Excellent, okay. And I did see the t-shirts on people and they do look great. Do they look good? Yeah. Yeah, they do. And I suspect they would have one that could accommodate Commissioner Hill. I bet they have a shirt for everybody. Yeah. That's right, that's right. Okay, so Executive Director Wells, it's about 40. First off, I should check, Commissioner, do you have any updates that you want to provide? Besides, of course, the ones that you just did on your properties. I wanna thank you for going out there this morning early. I know it was early Monday morning, but I also know it was probably pretty interesting. So I hope you enjoyed yourselves. We are all traveling out to MGM for the event so that we can be there safely, bright and early tomorrow morning. We'll be visiting, we'll be with MGM at start, then we'll be as a body of five in separate cars, sadly, but that's both assures our compliance with open meeting law and gives everyone flexibility to get home. We'll be going over to Plain Ridge Park, casino, then make our way to Encore Boston Harbor so that we can say hello to the teams there. Also seeing our teams on site, as well as the Game Sense advisors. So we're looking forward to that. So Karen, what do you recommend in terms of the pause? Is it a short pause or is it maybe requiring a little bit more time? So the two things, if you are looking to potentially get a report back that the MOU with DOR is completed, that's possible, I think, Todd. Do you have an opinion? We pause the meeting till 4.30, give folks enough time to potentially resolve this issue, then we could vote on all three at about 4.30. Otherwise- So let me check in, commissioners, do you want to see the MOU and know that there are no issues before we sign off today? So if so, we would need that amount of time. That would make sense. I see Commissioner O'Brien nodding her head. That's fine with me as well, Madam Chair. Commissioner Maynard. So it sounds like we would like to know that that piece of work is really in its final steps. In terms of its execution, I know that Executive Director Wells has, Executive Director has signed in the past, I think a predecessor may have, but I'm less concerned about the signatures to just know the status. Is that fair, commissioners? Do you agree with that? Okay, all right. So it sounds like we might need a little bit more time and we know that we are very appreciative of our sister agency at DOR working to accommodate this need. So I hope that gets relayed to them, Todd. All the commissioners are very appreciative. So, and then that gives on Corporate Boston Harbor a chance to breathe a bit and get everything lined up. They need that time anyway, Karen. Yeah, I'm not sure how much time they need, but there were some corrections and additions and things they needed to do. They're in control controls before we could sign off on them. So I'm sure we'd appreciate a little extra time. Kevin, I don't know if you have an update on timing. I've been kind of monitoring my email as we've been, and there's some less, they're trying to get it out the door. So, we're optimistic that this will be done within a few hours. Right. So, Council Grossman, how you feeling about that? Could we make it? Commissioners, is 4.30 the right time? Do you want? I'm wondering if it should be more like five o'clock so that we have time to actually get out there and situated? I don't know what everybody else is. I wonder if that makes sense too. I will certainly, of course, be checking in on this. And that sounds reasonable to me. Of course, it's other people who need to do certain things. So we'll move it along as quickly as possible. Okay. Karen, anything you want to add? No. All right. Then commissioners, we're going to pause this meeting. Let me turn to Dave. Will you just keep this open, Dave? If we, and if we accept, because you would keep the screen up to let the public know that we plan to reconvene at five. Yeah, we can do one of two options. We can do that. Keep a screen up that says the meeting will resume or we could end the stream. And when we come back, we could have a secondary video popped up that says like, you know, public meeting for number, whatever resumption, but whatever we think would be the best and most accessible. I'm thinking that's a recommendation. If we want to be transparent, commissioners should keep the streaming going. Is that otherwise? And I feel like, oh, it's not done. Yeah. Mills, do you have a thought on that? Yeah, it is no trouble to keep the stream going, but it may be, you know, it may be a bit much just to have a, you know, a stream with nothing on it for a few hours that might, you know, that might not be the best practice. I think it might work if Dave were to end this stream, create a new stream and inform the public via our social media channels. And I'm happy to send a note out to members of the media that we will be resuming this meeting at five o'clock and that folks can find it at the same place, same bat time, same bat channel, if you will on our YouTube page and our website. That works for me. Commissioners, you all sat with Tom's recommendation. Okay, then this meeting, we're not adjourning this meeting, we will resume it and we'll plan out 5 p.m. And commissioners, I think we should probably plan on getting to the MGM and MGC offices for that. Does that make sense? But you can all coordinate with Karen. All right, then thank you everyone. We'll have no motion to adjourn. Let's see you all in a little bit. Thank you so much. Thank you. If we do go, and if I end this meeting, that's okay, correct? If I leave it, thank you so much.