Truesdail Laboratory in California will conduct drug testing for Indiana’s two racetracks under a contract signed by the Indiana Horse Racing Commission, ending the commission’s relationship with a Lexington, Ky., laboratory that was troubled by testing delays last year.

Jockeys at Parx Racing in suburban Philadelphia continue to reject efforts by management to pin eligibility for the track’s insurance policy to language indemnifying the track from liability for accidents, a dispute that could threaten live racing at Parx as of next weekend.

Riders have been told that they must sign a document containing the indemnification language by Thursday in order to be eligible for an insurance policy that goes into effect March 19. The first live racing date at Parx after the March 19 deadline is Saturday, March 21.

For the seventh consecutive year, Charles Town will renew its partnership with CANTER Mid-Atlantic to help transition former racehorses into new careers off the racetrack.

On April 18, Charles Town Classic Day, the track will donate $10,000 to the group. The donation will go directly to the care of horses in the CANTER Mid-Atlantic program who have come from owners and trainers stabled at Charles Town.

Richard Lowell McCarthy, a handicapper and Equibase chart-caller who worked in the Thoroughbred industry for decades, died Saturday at his home in Jackson, N.Y., after a long illness. He was 68.

McCarthy was born in New Orleans, where he attended Jesuit High School and was graduated from the University of Louisiana-Lafayette, then became a clocker.

The annual summer meet at Saratoga Race Course continues to be a boon to the New York Capital region, generating more than $237 million in economic activity and approximately 2,600 jobs, according to a study released Friday by the Saratoga County Industrial Development Agency.

ARCADIA, Calif. - Horse racing in California had across-the-board declines in handle, race days, starters, and number of races in 2014, according to an annual report published earlier this week by the California Horse Racing Board.

Equine fatalities at the state’s racetracks declined 5 percent during the 2013-14 fiscal year ending June 30, 2014 compared with the previous fiscal year and were down 28 percent from the 2011-12 fiscal year.

Federal tax authorities have issued a notice saying that they intend to consider changes to the tax laws that are applied to parimutuel winnings, a step that could lead to a steep drop in the tax liabilities for horseplayers.

The Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service on Tuesday issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Public Hearing announcing the consideration. The notice states that the two agencies expect to take public comments about changes to the reporting and withholding requirements for parimutuel winnings through June 1.

West Point Thoroughbreds, the racing partnership company, has signed a deal giving it presenting sponsorship rights to the Breeders’ Cup Betting Challenge, and the company will award financial interests in a West Point Thoroughbreds horse to the top two finishers in the handicapping contest, the Breeders’ Cup and West Point Thoroughbreds announced Friday.

Six semifinalists have been named for the ninth annual Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award, honoring full-length work written with a horse-racing focus or backdrop.

The contest, which offers a $10,000 prize equal to that of the National Book Award, was created by the late Dr. Tony Ryan, founder of Ryanair Airline and owner of Castleton Lyons Farm in Lexington, Ky. Finalists for the award will be announced March 17, with the winner revealed at an April 15 invitation-only cocktail reception in the Castleton Lyons stallion barn.

Following are the six semifinalists for the 2014 award.

LEXINGTON, Ky. – A Kentucky committee approved a bill on Thursday night that would exempt from state taxes all bets made during the two-day Breeders’ Cup event at Keeneland on Oct. 30-31.

The Breeders’ Cup has been regularly granted tax breaks by legislatures in the states where the event has been held, including in Kentucky. The bill, approved Thursday by the House Budget Committee, would exempt wagers from a 1.5 percent tax that is typically applied to bets at Keeneland, with the track and the Breeders’ Cup retaining the cut that is usually sent to the state.