Casino developers hoping to break into the Massachusetts market are in for a rude awakening. The real challenge may not be getting a gambling bill passed on Beacon Hill, but turning a profit at a casino here in our wonderful, regulation-loving blue state once it does.

A host of veteran casino builders, eyeing sites from East Boston to Palmer for Las Vegas-style gambling resorts, may have finally met their match in the 170-page-plus casino bill making its way through the Massachusetts Legislature.

What the bill gives in relatively low tax rates, it takes away with a mountain of mandates aimed at pleasing a small army of special interests, from unions to environmental activists.

Casinos will be forced to market lottery tickets at the expense of their own revenues, buy electric power from “alternative” sources and even shell out cash for local elections.

And forget about the idea that gambling is supposed to be fun and maybe even a little sinful. Not here in Massachusetts, where only green, smoke-free and thoroughly joyless casinos will be permitted.

“My suspicion is that it goes back in Massachusetts history – there is still that strong puritanical view that gambling is immoral,” noted Mark Hichar, a partner at law firm Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge, who has been closely tracking the casino debate in Massachusetts.

Good, Puritan Fun

Of course, I am indulging in a bit of hyperbole here. There’s no question the casino developers who make it through the state’s political gauntlet will turn a profit.

Even in here in our beloved Taxachusetts, that one is just too hard to screw up.

In fact, House Speaker Robert DeLeo’s gambling bill proposes tax rates – at 40 percent for racinos and 25 percent for casinos – that are a lot lower than many other states.

But, as always, the devil here is in the details of the legislation, which hits would-be casino builders with a blizzard of mandates – mandates that, even without direct dollar costs spelled out, will certainly add up swiftly.

The problem is, casinos are not just giant, revenue-making machines for state governments. They make money by providing a form of entertainment, a fun escape from the daily grind.

And if it’s not fun, then gamblers are going to continue to skip town, as they have for years, and pump their money into slot machines in Connecticut and Rhode Island.

Thanks Massachusetts!

But that basic fact appears to have been lost in the now-smokeless backrooms on Beacon Hill where the details of the bill were hammered out.

The current House gambling bill lays out plans for two, large-scale resort casinos, but would put both at an immediate disadvantage by imposing a smoking ban.

By contrast, Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun both have partial bans that still leave space for smokers to do their thing.

How important is this? Harrah’s Entertainment, one of the largest gaming companies in the world, now puts in routine warnings to investors about possible smoking bans in its financial statements.

Along with being barred from lighting up, gamblers at Bay State casinos will also be continually warned about the perils of gambling addiction, with signs and posters required to be posted prominently for everyone heading to play the slots to see – kind of like going to a bar and seeing AA slogans and placards posted on all the walls.

For good measure, specialists in gambling addiction will have their own counseling space within the casino, ready to steer straight wayward gamblers.

Mandate Destiny

Amazingly, when it comes to potentially costly mandates, we are just getting warmed up.

For starters, before any casino can be built, the developer will first have to win support of the city or town in question through a full-scale local election.

Fair enough. Of course, the developer is also required to foot the bill for said election, which could prove quite expensive for some.

Just take the long-standing plan to build a casino at Suffolk Downs in East Boston. Casino developer Richard Fields and his fellow investors at Suffolk would have to pay for a city-wide Boston election – no small change.

The Massachusetts lottery, a major foe of past casino bills, is also well-protected under the proposed gambling bill.

Most businesses wouldn’t be asked to market a competitor’s products, but would-be Massachusetts casino builders will have to do just that in order to get a green light to do business here. Casino developers will have to come up with plans to market lottery tickets and even make space available for keno machines.

Of course, every dollar spent on a lottery ticket inside a casino is one less dollar for the gambling hall, but that little detail appears lost on our lawmakers.

Unions, big backers of the gambling bill in hopes it will create thousands of new jobs, are also not likely to be disappointed either.

When they are ready to open, the state’s new casinos and racinos, with a few exceptions, will have to hire Massachusetts residents. Casino managers, in turn, would have to lay out clear career paths for the different positions they fill, while also being ready to help pay for additional training and tuition.

Even environmentalists, not exactly a major voice in the casino debate so far, would make out.

The new casinos would be required to meet the latest green building standards. And for good measure, the new casinos, once built, would also have to buy 10 percent of their electric power from alternative sources like wind farms.

But, really, why should anyone be surprised? The good folks on Beacon Hill are just doing what they do so well, raiding a potentially lucrative business before it even opens to reward all their friends and allies.

Casino developers of the world, welcome to Massachusetts.