Kentucky Supreme Court to rule on legality of racetrack gaming machines

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Kentucky Supreme Court has ordered that a case involving the legality of machines that have proved lucrative to Kentucky racetracks and horsemen be moved to its domain.

In an order dated June 13, the Supreme Court granted a motion sought by the Family Foundation of Kentucky, a conservative religious group, to transfer the case to the court’s docket, bypassing the lower Court of Appeals. The order states that the seven Supreme Court justices “all concur.”

The case, which dates back to 2014, has undergone a number of hearings and rulings in the past five years. The Supreme Court had earlier ruled in 2014 that the case be sent back to the state’s District Court, where it originated, to provide for discovery for the plaintiff, which is seeking a ruling that states that the use of the machines violates the state’s Constitution.

The District Court ruled late last year that the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission was within its rights to approve rules allowing racetracks to operate the machines, which use the results of previously run horse races to determine payouts to players. The machines are remarkably similar to slot machines in the way they look and operate. The Family Foundation has appealed that ruling.

The machines are currently installed at facilities owned and operated by Churchill Downs, Ellis Park, Keeneland, Kentucky Downs, and The Red Mile. To date, according to records maintained by the KKRC, $5 billion has been wagered through the machines since they were first installed at Kentucky Downs in 2011, and recent figures suggest that handle on the machines will top $2 billion in the current fiscal year, which ends in June.

The machines have generated tens of millions of dollars in revenue annually for their operators, and portions of the revenue from the machines go to prop up purses and breeders’ awards at Kentucky racetracks. The KHRC has recently been aggressively pushing tracks to capitalize on the machines.

Oral arguments in the case are not expected to be heard until early 2020. Kentucky has a gubernatorial election later this year, and the Democratic challenger, Andy Beshear, has expressed support for legislation authorizing casinos as part of his platform.