Texas considers expansion of gambling
There were five horse-racing bills filed in the Texas Legislature last week, including bills seeking historical racing and account wagering. The next step for all of the bills is to obtain committee hearings, according to an announcement on the filings put out by both the Texas Thoroughbred Association and the Texas Horsemen’s Partnership.
The historical-racing bill, which refers to “previously run races” in the text of the document, calls for setting aside a portion of such wagering revenue for different state causes such as law enforcement programs. The account-wagering bill would legalize such betting in the state.
In other bills, a purse-matching fund from the state’s general revenue fund seeks to provide $25 million in purses. There are also bills that address the budget and operating costs of the Texas Racing Commission.
- additional reporting by Matt Hegarty