KY Horse Racing Commission Opts Into HISA Agreement

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission unanimously approved a motion March 21 to opt into a voluntary implementation agreement with the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority.

The move comes less than a week before HISA's Anti-Doping and Medication Control Program launches March 27 under administration by the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit. The ADMC Program covers drug testing and enforcement, creating uniform rules and standardized testing in states under HISA's jurisdiction. HISA's Racetrack Safety Program has been implemented since July.

The motion further noted that the KHRC reached the agreement "without election to collect and remit fees from the Thoroughbred racetracks under KHRC jurisdiction with the option to end the agreement if all or relevant portion of the horse racing integrity and Welfare Act is found unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction with all appeals being exhausted."

HISA has been victorious in court in recent months after some legal setbacks in 2022. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals declared HISA's enabling legislation facially unconstitutional late last year. A congressional response to the ruling enacted over the winter placed it on sounder legal footing.

A related case in Louisiana, brought by the states of West Virginia, Louisiana, and others, is focused on HISA's alleged violations of the Administrative Procedures Act in implementing regulations. A preliminary injunction was issued by Judge Terry Doughty last year. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ultimately allowed the injunction to remain in effect when it struck down HISA in its entirety, but the injunction's scope is limited to Louisiana and West Virginia, where state racing commissions continue to regulate horse racing.

"Candidly, we started this process last fall, and we've had a few stops and starts along the way, but we feel good about where we are right now," KHRC executive director Jamie Eads told commissioners.

The motion further stated that the Kentucky tracks "should not be required to pay more to the authority than the amount based on the annual budget of the authority for the following calendar year" based on the "projected amount of covered racing starts for the year in each state as set forth" in specific rules and regulations.

Eads thanked KHRC staff for working "really hard along with the HISA team and the HIWU group, and our Kentucky racetracks were with us the whole time, too," Eads said. "So it's been a process. We think we're at the right spot."

The KHRC has existing relationships with some HISA executives. Jim Gates, a former KHRC commissioner, is HISA's chief financial officer, and former KHRC executive director Marc Guilfoyle is HISA's director of state racing commission relations.

The KHRC had long been expected to opt into a voluntary agreement with HISA.

-Dick Downey contributed to this story.