The California Horse Racing Board on Thursday became the first racing jurisdiction in the U.S. to agree to collect and remit fees to the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority, the new federally overseen regulatory organization that will begin operations on July 1.
Betty Leon, a community activist in Queens, has been named to the board of directors of the New York Racing Association by the New York Assembly, the assembly announced on Wednesday.
The Rules Committee of the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission on Tuesday unanimously recommended that the full commission adopt several rule changes that will allow the agency to make limited comments about ongoing adjudications and open stewards’ hearings to members of the public.
The Association of Racing Commissioners International has launched a subsidiary modeled on itself that would issue recommendations for government agencies overseeing sports betting in their states.
A budget for New York approved on Saturday by state legislators includes language that guarantees that the New York Racing Association will continue to receive significant payments from the state’s casinos, a significant victory for NYRA, which runs Aqueduct, Belmont, and Saratoga Race Course.
The first-year budget for the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority has been estimated at $14.3 million, according to a document the authority has distributed to racetracks and racing commissions. The budget is listed on two spreadsheets detailing the estimated funding responsibilities of either individual states or racetracks to the authority, which expects to begin operations on July 1, in accordance with a date set in federal legislation.
Attendance for each day of the two-day Breeders’ Cup event scheduled for Nov. 4 and 5 at Keeneland Racecourse in Lexington will be capped at 45,000, and tickets to a variety of permanent and temporary seating areas will go on sale beginning May 9, Breeders’ Cup and Keeneland announced on Thursday.
Queen’s Plate-winning owner-trainer John Cardella died last Dec. 25 at 90, according to owner Paul Cooper. Cardella was best known for campaigning 1983 Queen’s Plate victor Bompago.
Total wagering on U.S. horse races in March fell 2.4 percent compared to the same month last year, according to figures released by Equibase on Tuesday, a signal that the surge in betting on Thoroughbred races that occurred during the pandemic has begun to moderate.
The Federal Trade Commission has approved a set of rules drafted by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority that includes a formula for determining the funding responsibilities of racing states, with the formula based on the number of races held in the state and the “size of the purses” in the state.
