NY Lawmakers Approve Major New Equine Drug Testing Lab

New York lawmakers have authorized the New York Racing Association to construct a major new equine drug testing lab modeled on the state-of-the-art lab at the University of California at Davis.

The approval, contained in one of the bills making up the state's 2020 spending plan, came April 2 in Albany, N.Y., and the bill will be sent to Gov. Andrew Cuomo for his signature. Cuomo proposed the idea, at NYRA's request, in January.

"Robust drug testing and research is a central component in maintaining the integrity of horse racing and enhancing the health and well-being of horses competing in New York,'' NYRA spokesman Patrick McKenna said Thursday.

NYRA said the new facility will make New York a world leader in equine drug testing and research. McKenna said the lab's approval "is particularly important in light of the recent indictments that resulted from a wide-ranging federal probe into illegal doping of horses. As we saw through those indictments, the suspected illegal substances were alleged to have been used specifically because they fall outside of the current capabilities of equine drug testing."

NYRA said a new facility would expand equine drug research so that such substances can be more quickly identified. The racing corporation, which runs Aqueduct Racetrack, Belmont Park, and Saratoga Race Course, said the measure was backed by Thoroughbred horsemen and breeders and Standardbred interests.

NYRA believes the new lab "will contribute to the sport's growth and continued success as a job creator and engine for economic opportunity."

The plan's approval comes as Aqueduct in Queens is being converted into a temporary hospital as New York City, and elsewhere, copes with rising COVID-19 cases.

Precisely where the lab would be located is still under discussion. NYRA would have to pay for its costs, which would have to be approved as part of a long-term lease arrangement through the state gaming commission, according to the legislation. The state agency will operate or contract for the operation of the facility.

The budget bill states that NYRA is to issue a report by April 1, 2021, outlining the specifics about the facility.

The idea has been talked about since 2014 in New York; a NYRA equine safety committee and the NYRA board backed the idea last year. Currently, all equine drug testing is performed at Morrisville State College.