Say NO to Horse Racing and Pari-Mutuel Gambling

HORSE RACING AND PARI-MUTUEL GAMBLING:

 

THE 111th TENNESSEE GENERAL ASSEMBLY:

The pro-gambling folks are at it again and there are two bils on horse racing, plus several more on other types of gambling. We will be opposing these and the other bills.

 

HORSE RACING-PARI-MUTUEL BETTING
SB 0817 by *Akbari, (HB 1421) by *Towns
Gambling - As introduced, enacts the "Horse Racing Control Act of 2019," authorizing and regulating parimutuel wagering on horse racing.

 

HORSE RACING-PARI-MUTUEL BETTING:
SB 0522 by *Niceley (HB 1294) by *Farmer
Gambling - As introduced, establishes the Tennessee horse racing commission to regulate horse racing and pari-mutuel wagering in Tennessee.

 

"Throughout the country, attendance at racetracks is down. Revenues and profits have fallen. Trainers, sometimes desperate to win, increasingly drug their animals to make them run faster or run through pain, threatening the safety of horses and riders alike.
" 'I personally don't see a reason for the racing industry to exist when I look 10, 20 or 25 years out," says Susan Kayne, the team manager of Unbridled Racing who has spent 25 years owning, raising and breeding horses. "The way it's funded, the disarray, the lack of respect for the horse itself — which is the reason why there is a horse industry. I see it imploding upon itself '."

Horse racing doesn't make it on its own any longer.  Most tracks now function as casinos with lots of machines on the premises to gamble on.

 

THE 110th TENNESSEE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SB 1908 by *Niceley, HB 2109 by *Tillis , TRAVIS, CALFEE, MARSH

Business and Commerce - As introduced, establishes the Tennessee horse racing commission to regulate horse racing and pari-mutuel wagering in Tennessee.

STATUS:  SB1908 is Scheduled in the Senate Government Operations committee on Wednesday.  That committee cannot 'kill' a bill, only send it out with a 'positive' recommendation; a 'negative' recommendation or no recommendation.  From there it will go to the Senate State and Local Committee. It is not too early to begin contacting committee members urging them to vote AGAINST SB1908.

 

We will be strongly opposing this bill. I am truly disappointed that this proposal has appeared once again. The 'Sport of Kings' isn't so much any longer.  We think about the Kentucky Derby and the other famous annual races, but in general, interest in horse racing is nothing like it used to be, especially among young people. It isn't fast enough, glitzy enough, etc., UNLESS the track becomes a BETTING PARLOR to bet on simulcast races from other states (which this bill puts in place) or it becomes a casino with lots of games to gamble on

THANKFULLY THIS WAS DEFERRED TO SUMMER STUDY!

 

No, Horse Racing Can't Be Saved—Even by a Triple Crown Winner

As Interest In Horse Racing Declines, Track Turns To Other Options

The Kentucky Derby and the Slow Death of Horse Racing

American horse racing isn't dead – but it's getting awfully close

Interest in Horse Racing Continues to Decline in North America

Horse racing  An industry in crisis