Depreciation, H-2A Visa Reform Passed Over by Congress

The late scramble in Washington D.C. this week on federal legislation being considered before a divided Congress is seated in January left off the table some initiative valuable to the Thoroughbred industry, according to the National Thoroughbred Racing Association.

Congress did not include popular pro-business tax extenders including the three-year depreciation schedule for racehorses under age 2, which expired at the end of 2021. The depreciation remains expired and a 100% bonus depreciation will phase down in 2023 to 80%. The NTRA said it intends to work with the new Congress in the first quarter of next year to address this issue.

Meaningful immigration reform was also not included in the end-of-the-year omnibus spending package that included clarifying language for the Horseracing and Integrity and Safety Act. NTRA was supportive of Sen. Michael Bennet's Affordable and Secure Food Act being included in the spending package. The inclusion of this bill would have moved would have opened up the labor market for the entire equine industry.

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The H-2B cap is one of the horse industry's biggest hurdles in finding reliable labor to fill roles like backstretch positions. By transitioning into the H-2A program, which does not have an annual cap, filling these vital positions would have been easier. NTRA will continue to advocate before Congress for the passage of permanent solutions to temporary worker issues in the industry.