Kentucky budget bill includes funds for equine drug-testing lab, new investigators

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The one-year state budget passed last week by the Kentucky legislature includes funding to establish an equine drug-testing laboratory at the University of Kentucky and directs money to the state’s racing commission in order to hire additional investigators, according to the Senate majority leader.

The $11.4 billion budget bill, which was passed by the Republican-controlled legislature on April 1, includes a provision allowing the Equine Drug Research Council, an arm of the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission, to use $1.5 million of its funds to start the drug-testing laboratory at UK’s Gluck Equine Research Center. According to Damon Thayer, the Senate majority leader and a member of the EDRC, the EDRC had a surplus of $3 million at the time the budget was passed.

Thayer said that the drug-testing laboratory would be self-sufficient after it has been set up, and it will conduct equine drug testing on behalf of the state’s racetracks while also soliciting business from other states. Kentucky’s equine drug testing is currently performed by the Truesdail laboratory in California.

“The plan is that it would be a profit center for UK,” Thayer said Tuesday.

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While the funding for the laboratory would come from money that is already set aside, the budget also directs $500,000 from the state’s general fund to the KHRC in order to hire a state safety steward and additional investigators. Thayer said that he supported the provision after speaking with the KHRC after a wide-ranging federal indictment was released in early March implicating dozens of people in a scheme to manufacture, distribute, and administer illegal substances to both Thoroughbred and Standardbred horses.

“We ought to send a message in Kentucky that we will not stand for cheating,” Thayer said. “We know it’s a minority out there, but this will give us some more boots on the ground.”

The budget was passed in the midst of the disruption being caused by the coronavirus pandemic, which is anticipated to result in revenue shortfalls for the state this year. The bill has been sent to Gov. Steve Beshear, a Democrat, who has the power to issue line-item vetoes.

Thayer said he believes that the provisions would survive line-item vetoes due to the Republican control of the legislature. The legislature will reconvene April 14 in order to consider any vetoes.

“I think we would have the votes for an over-ride,” Thayer said.