Massachusetts income tax repeal a no-go

BOSTON, Nov. 4 (UPI) -- Massachusetts voters opted against phasing out the state's 5.3 percent income tax when they went to the polls during Tuesday's election.

Residents voted more than 2-to-1, with 45 percent of precincts reporting, against a referendum that would slash the state income tax to 2.65 percent in January, and then eliminate it completely the following year, the Boston Herald reported.

Voters said "yes," however, to a ban on dog racing that is accompanied by betting. The measure will likely lead to the closing down of the state's two greyhound racetracks as of Jan. 1, 2010, the newspaper said.