Thayer, Koenig to co-chair Kentucky's Pari-Mutuel Wagering Taxation Task Force committee
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Two allies of the horse-racing industry have been appointed the co-chairs of a Kentucky legislative committee that will examine the amount of taxes that racetracks pay to the state from gambling devices known as historical horse-racing machines.
Sen. Damon Thayer, a former racing executive who is the Senate majority leader, and Adam Koenig, the sponsor of bill passed earlier this year clarifying the legal status of the devices, were appointed the co-chairs when the committee was formed on Tuesday. Both are longtime advocates for the racing industry who have pushed for tax breaks in the state legislature on racing- and breeding-related activities.
The committee, called the Pari-Mutuel Wagering Taxation Task Force, was agreed to by racetracks in the state as part of the legislative push to get the clarifying bill passed. Racetracks in Kentucky are the only businesses allowed to operate the devices, which have proliferated throughout the state since they were first authorized by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission in 2012.
Critics of the clarifying legislation had called on the racing industry to accept higher tax rates on the machines during debate over the bill. The critics have contended that casinos in other states have a much higher tax rate, though those taxes are generally based on net profit on traditional gambling devices, rather than a percentage of the handle, as the devices are taxed in Kentucky.
Other House and Senate members of the committee include Julie Raque Adams, Christian McDaniel, Stephen West, Jonathan Dixon, Al Gentry, Matthew Koch, and Jason Petrie.