Historical racing bill faces long odds in Arizona

Two Arizona Senate committees have approved a bill that would authorize historical horseracing machines and sports betting at both Turf Paradise and Arizona Downs, according to legislative records, but the bill faces an uphill battle in a state where Indian tribes hold a powerful position in the casino marketplace.

The approvals by the Senate Rules and Appropriations committees this week occurred in the midst of Gov. Doug Ducey attempting to renegotiate tribal compacts with the 16 federally recognized tribes in the state, which together operate 24 casinos. Ducey has said that he supports the legalization of sports betting at the casinos and through remote devices. The compacts are set to expire in 2022.

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The bill has yet to be assigned a date on the Senate floor, according to legislative records.

Racetrack owners in Arizona have pushed for years to obtain authorization to operate slot machines or other casino-type games, but those efforts have consistently withered in the face of opposition from tribes, which have invested billions of dollars in casinos and related amenities. The bill approved by the Senate committees would authorize devices that use previously run races to generate random numbers determining payouts, limited to “15 percent of the total gaming positions” at Indian casinos. The devices are in use in several states, most notably Kentucky.

In 2018, a local partnership bought Arizona Downs in Prescott Valley and vowed to reopen the track. But in 2019, the track, which had been dormant for 10 years, abruptly shut down midway through its summer meet amid a dispute with Turf Paradise over the importation of simulcast signals and other financial difficulties.

The partnership that bought Arizona Downs includes Corey Johnsen, a longtime racing executive who was once the co-owner of Kentucky Downs, a track that was swiftly transformed into a major racing destination due to revenue generated by historical horse racing machines beginning in 2012. Kentucky Downs holds a brief all-turf race meet each year, and now distributes nearly $2 million a day in purses.

A group lobbying for the bill, Save Arizona Horse Racing, claims that the bill would lead to “$300 million in capital investment” by horse racing interests in the state, including the installation of a turf course at Arizona Downs. The group also said that daily purse distribution at tracks in the state would climb from $80,000 a day to $300,000 a day.