Martin: Federal Funds Would Lessen HISA Costs to Sport

Speaking on "At the Races With Steve Byk" on Sirius XM Satellite Radio, Association of Racing Commissioners International president Ed Martin challenged the Thoroughbred racing industry to ask Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to include a $50 million federal appropriation during the upcoming "lame duck" congressional session to fund Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority operations.

Martin views this as a means to launch HISA's anti-doping program and prevent substantial new regulatory costs on racetracks and horsemen. Last week, HISA announced it would seek to collect $72.5 million for 2023, its first full year of operations, of which $58.1 million is intended to fund its Anti-Doping and Medication Control Program that takes effect in January.

If state racing commissions do not opt-in to paying HISA fees, it becomes the responsibility of the covered racetracks in the state to collect the fees to pay the HISA assessment.

"It would seem to me that those who advocated for the legislation missed a golden opportunity to make sure that HISA would not prove too costly for an industry and sport struggling to compete," he said on the radio program.

McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky and one of the country's most influential politicians, was one of the legislators whose support was instrumental in the ultimate passage of the act that authorized HISA.

"$73 million is the bill they came up with. Now it's time to support what he created," Martin said.