The following is part of a continuing series analyzing political advertising this campaign season.



Political action committee: Think About It



Party: nonpartisan

TV ad: “Benefits”



Length: 30 seconds



Producer: Glover Park Group, Washington, D.C.



Market: Statewide, television (similar ad on radio)



Announcer: Man’s voice



Visuals: Ad begins with an artist’s drawing of the attractive resort casino. From there it moves to images of smiling senior citizens, a family, a community scene, trucks hauling loads, workers on the job. The ad also features dramatic blocks of type, and ends with a black screen and the white letters “Think About It.”



Text, audio: A man’s voice says: “What can a resort casino mean for Maine? Nearly $50 million a year in property tax relief. That’s one reason Maine’s Senior Citizen Council supports the resort casino. Nearly $50 million for our local schools. That’s why so many parents are supporting it. An estimated 10,000 new jobs. That’s why Maine’s AFL-CIO is for it. A projected $100 million in new revenue for the state. Not a penny of it from taxpayers. Lower property taxes. Better schools. 10,000 new jobs. Think about it.



Purpose: To convince voters that a casino would help Maine by lowering property taxes, giving money to schools and creating jobs.

Accuracy: The casino has been endorsed by the Maine Council of Senior Citizens and by Maine’s AFL-CIO. No other groups have endorsed the casino at this time.

The key word in the ad is “can.” “What can a resort casino mean for Maine?” No one knows how many jobs or how much money a casino would generate. A consulting group hired by the casino developers has projected it would create 10,000 jobs and up to $100 million in new revenue for the state.

Under the proposed law allowing the casino, 50 percent of the estimated $100 million the state would get must be given to Maine towns and cities. But there is no guarantee the towns will use the money to lower property taxes.

Also under the proposed law, 40 percent of the state’s take must be given to the towns for education. While the money must be used for education by the towns, there is no guarantee it will create better schools.

Finally, as proposed, the casino would get no taxpayer support.



Our view: Everything’s coming up roses. Think About It paints an alluring picture of life after a casino is built. The jobs and revenue figures are based on an economic impact study paid for by backers of the casino. That doesn’t mean they aren’t earnest, but they are just projections.

There will be new jobs, both in construction and at the resort. That’s a fact. There will be some money flowing into state coffers. How much, we can’t be sure.

And people from all walks of life and from all over the state are lending their support to the pro-casino forces. Of course, the same thing can be said about CasinosNO!, which also has drawn considerable support.

There may or may not be property tax relief. In 1998, the state implemented the Homestead Exemption, which gave all municipalities more state money. The intent was to lower property taxes. However, while many towns and cities did lower taxes, others spent every dime on other things without lowering taxes. Think About It says that taxpayers could use a lawsuit to force a town or city into using casino money to reduce property taxes, but there are no guarantees that anyone’s tax rate will go down.

This ad portrays the best possible outcome. Voters should go to the polls with reasonable expectations, not with visions of sugarplums and buckets full of cash dancing in their heads. A casino will not solve all of Maine’s tax or revenue problems.

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