Horse Racetrack Shutdowns Loom Across Texas
After a tense meeting and a deadlocked vote, the Texas Racing Commission declined Tuesday to repeal its earlier authorization of historical racing, a move that could mean a statewide shutdown for the entire horse racing industry in February.
The commission has been on a collision course with several members of the Legislature since last year, when the Commission voted to authorize tracks to implement historical racing, which involves gambling on electronic simulations of old races. Critics, including Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Senate Finance Committee Chairwoman Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, have decried the Commission's efforts as a backdoor expansion of gambling in Texas.
A state district judge ruled last year that the commission had overstepped its authority. The Texas Horsemen’s Partnership, Texas Thoroughbred Association, the Texas Quarter Horse Association and Sam Houston Race Park have appealed the ruling.
While the legality of the commission’s actions have been makings its way through the court system, legislators weren’t content to wait. They threatened to defund the the commission entirely if it didn’t repeal its historical racing rules. Defunding the commission would, in effect, dismantle the horse racing industry across the entire state, as tracks can’t operate without the commission in place to regulate them, according to state law.
Read more: http://www.texastribune.org/2015/12/15/texas-racing-commission-upholds-historical-racing-/
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