Live racing and simulcast betting have been shut down at horse racing tracks across Texas, including the Sam Houston Race Park[/caption]Updated Sept. 9
After being shut down for the day Sept. 1 amid legislative disputes over historical racing machines, simulcast wagering is back online at the Sam Houston Race Park in Cy-Fair.
The Texas Racing Commission had to shut down simulcast wagering and live racing at all Texas horse racing parks after legislators withheld commission funding, but a temporary agreement Sept. 2 provided funding for at least 90 days.
“We are glad to see our ability to operate our business restored,” Sam Houston Race Park President Andrea Young said in a statement. “However, we remain extremely concerned with both the process and the extremely short period of funding. Like any business, we need to be able to plan farther out than three months.”
Original story posted Sept. 1
The Texas Racing Commission has shut down simulcast wagering, live racing and the exporting of live signals at Sam Houston Race Park as of Sept. 1.
An ongoing battle between state legislators and the Texas Racing Commission regarding historical racing machines resulted in the Legislative Budget Board withholding critical TRC funds. Without funding, commission officials found themselves unable to provide oversight for live and simulcast wagering, forcing horse racing parks across the state to shut down racing operations.
SHRP spokesperson Mike Levigne said the effects of the shut down are widespread and immediate.
“There are about 250 jobs at stake in the immediate future, just among people who work at the track,” he said. “That doesn’t include the trainers, veterinarians and the ancillary businesses that are in play. There are employees who are trying to figure out if they are going to need daycare next week. The impact gets to be really personal really fast.”
The move has devastating effects statewide, said Rob Werstler, racing director with the Texas Quarter Horse Association.
Officials with Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie are unable to move forward with plans to host the American Quarter Horse Association Challenge Championship—an event set for Oct. 18 that involves hiring hundreds of people. Racing has also been shut down at Retama Park in San Antonio, which hosts live racing year-round, leaving horsemen in a state of bewilderment.
“This creates the perception that the Texas Legislature has turned its back on racing,” Werstler said. “We know that’s not the truth, but that’s the perception.”
Even for the Sam Houston Race Park, which does not host live races until January, the cost of the shutdown is steep, Werstler said.
“Having their simulcasting shut down means they are not generating purses for when their races do start up,” he said. “The entire industry has essentially been shut down. It makes no sense whatsoever.”
Historical racing
The conflict between the TRC and Texas lawmakers revolves around the commission’s approval of historical racing machines. Similar in appearance to slot machines, historical racing machines allow players to bet on past races without any information regarding the horse names and race dates. To date, no Texas racetracks have installed any historical racing devices.
The TRC board first passed the rule change allowing historical racing in August 2014, drawing criticism from Senate budget writers who said the commission did not have authority to implement the change. TRC declined to outlaw historical racing in late August, leading legislators to make good on their threat to take away funding.
The Legislature appropriated $15.4 million for TRC in the budget passed in the 2015 legislative session, but made the $1.5 million set aside for administrative funds subject to Legislative Budget Board approval. LBB, co-chaired by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, did not approve the administrative funds, but said the TRC could transfer other budget funds to cover administrative costs.
“I fully support the proposal by Senate members to allow the commission to use their existing appropriation dollars to continue covering administrative costs while racing board members adjust their focus from expansion of gaming to their statutory purpose of enforcing the Texas Racing Act and its rules to ensure the safety, integrity, and fairness of Texas pari-mutuel racing,” Patrick said in a statement.
However, Levigne said this is not an actual solution, and that the LBB’s suggestion to transfer funds is unconstitutional.
“There is a clear legislative process that outlines how the agency gets its funding, and now they’re holding it hostage,” he said. “They’re suggesting [TRC] could just move the money around. It is unconstitutional to do that without LBB authorization.”
State Rep. Allen Fletcher, R-Cypress, said he thinks the issue should be settled in court or through the legislative process.
“I don’t want to see [TRC] defunded only to have a court later decide that historical racing is legal,” he said. “The money has already been approved in the budget. I don’t like going back on our financial commitments without some court ruling or legislative decision. They should be able to use that money, and we’ll let the courts or legislators in the next session make a decision.”
Officials with SHRP are calling on the LBB to host a public meeting during which members vote on whether TRC funding should be restored. In a press statement, SHRP President Andrea Young suggested the decision on TRC funding should not be left in the hands of Patrick and Senate Finance Committee Chairwoman Jane Nelson.
“This industry needs to be funded and two people from one chamber should not get to eliminate 36,000 Texas jobs without an official meeting,” she said. “The full Legislative Budget Board should meet and decide the fate of Texas racing in full daylight, not through shady backroom deals and secret phone calls under cover of darkness."
In the meantime, SHRP will remain open for non-racing activities, including the Sept. 26 Texas Concert for Conservation featuring Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Oct. 13 ZiegenBock Music Festival.
