MTR Gaming Group Inc., the parent company of Mountaineer Race Track and Gaming Resort in West Virginia, had net income of $7.7 million in 2005, down 46.9 percent from the company's 2004 net income of $14.5 million, according to financial documents released late Wednesday.

Revenue in 2005 was $349.9 million, compared with revenue of $309.9 million in 2004. Much of the revenue increase came from MTR's Binion's property in Las Vegas, which the company took over in March last year after a management contract with Harrah's Entertainment expired.

Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher on Tuesday signed a bill into law that seeks to improve protection for buyers of horses at auction or through private sales.

The bill, spurred in part by a lawsuit filed by California-based owner Jess Jackson against his former bloodstock advisers, makes it illegal for an agent to represent both a buyer and a seller in a transaction - a practice known as dual agency - without disclosing the two roles to both sides.

While a rebate program offered by the New York Racing Association will not start until May 3, a 1-percent takeout increase, to 15 percent, on straight wagers made on NYRA races goes into effect on Saturday. As part of the decision to approve the rebate program, the New York State Racing and Wagering Board required NYRA to increase the takeout.

Churchill Downs Inc. has begun interviewing candidates for a new chief executive officer, but the process has not resulted yet in a "clearly identifiable candidate," Churchill's current CEO, Tom Meeker, said Wednesday.

The New York State Racing and Wagering Board at a meeting on Tuesday approved proposals by the New York Racing Association and Capital Off-Track Betting Corporation to award rebates to their customers.

The vote Tuesday ended a yearlong lobbying campaign by NYRA to get approval for the program, which will reward bettors with rebates based on their monthly level of handle. NYRA first approached the racing and wagering board last year about getting a program approved, but progress had been slow because of objections by some offtrack betting companies to the programs.

A bill that would raise the takeout on Kentucky races in order to pay for accident insurance for jockeys passed the Kentucky House of Representatives on Friday morning and was headed to the Senate for a vote on Monday.

LEXINGTON, Ky. - A bill that would increase the takeout in Kentucky by 0.1 percent to pay for an insurance policy covering jockeys passed in a House committee on Thursday after being attached to an unrelated bill as an amendment.

The bill, which was passed unanimously by the Labor and Industry Committee, has drawn heavy support from the state's racing industry and Gov. Ernie Fletcher. The measure was sent to the Labor and Industry Committee on Thursday after Rep. Denver Butler refused to hear the bill earlier this week in the committee he chairs, House Licensing and Occupation.

The California Horse Racing Board on Thursday passed a recommendation by its Medication Committee to allow protests to be submitted and conduct a hearing on the medication issue surrounding Intercontinental's victory in the $200,000 Palomar at Del Mar on Sept. 3, 2005. The action opens the door to a possible redistribution of the Palomar purse.

Representatives of racetracks, industry organizations, and the Jockeys' Guild participated in a meeting Thursday to discuss issues relating to riders' health and welfare, participants in the meeting said.

The meeting, conducted via conference call, was the second between the organizations in the past two weeks. After the previous meeting, officials of the organizations said that the groups were working on a confidential proposal to address riders' health and welfare, but participants said after the Thursday call that the proposal has yet to be finalized.

The Ad Hoc Committee on the Future of Racing in New York held three panel discussions on Thursday in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., in an effort to inform members of the committee about issues critical to the racing industry.

The talks, held at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, focused on the general state of the national racing and breeding industries, along with racing medication, integrity, and backstretch issues, according to Mike Kane, the communications director for the Hall of Fame.