Damon Thayer

by Sara Gordon and Katie Petrunyak Many of the nearly 250 people attending the Kentucky Thoroughbred Farm Managers Club's (KTFMC) monthly meeting, held Tuesday evening at the Keeneland sales pavilion, were unfamiliar with the unregulated and untaxed gaming machines known as "gray machines." The risk these gray machines pose to historical horse racing (HHR) gaming and the state's horse racing industry as a whole were the main topic of the meeting that included a discussion and Q and A session of Central Kentucky legislators. In a panel moderated by the...

With Congress passing a short-term bill to fund the government for a matter of days, efforts to include in the full-year omnibus spending bill a legislative fix to the constitutional problems dogging the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) is coming down to the crunch, Friday of next week the deadline to pass such a bill before the make-up of Congress changes shape next year. So, where does this all leave HISA? The answer resembles a puzzle box shaken onto the floor, with HISA offering limited direction as to how...

Through the conclusion of racing at Keeneland Sunday Oct. 15, more than $1.1 million has been returned to bettors since the introduction of penny breakage--rounding pari-mutuel winnings to the penny and not the dime--less than two months ago, according to a blog post from the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation (TIF). TIF was a vocal supporter and champion of the penny breakage provision, the first of its kind in North America as part of broader legislation designed to standardize pari-mutuel taxation. "The total is even higher than $1.1 million, that is just...

The Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP) announced that it will host a horse industry advocacy event at Midway University Tuesday, Sept. 6, from 5-7 p.m. Participants in Kentucky's signature horse industry are invited to attend to learn about legislative issues that can impact their equine business, how to engage in the legislative process, and how to best communicate with lawmakers. In addition to representatives from KEEP and the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association, speakers include Senate Majority Floor Leader Damon Thayer, Senate Minority Caucus Chair Reggie Thomas and Representative Matt Koch. Candidates...

By a vote of 33-1, the Kentucky State Senate has given their stamp of approval to Kentucky House Bill 607, which modernizes the taxation of pari-mutuel wagers and, in a major victory for horseplayers, eliminates the dime breakage than has been the standard for many years in favor of penny breakage. The change in the breakage will put more money into the pockets of horseplayers and is the first such measure to be introduced in the United States. The lone dissenting vote came from Republican Senator Whitney Westerfield. "For more...

House Bill 606, which would legalize sports betting in Kentucky, passed by a margin of 58 to 30 Friday in the Kentucky House and will now be sent to the Senate. The bill will also legalize fantasy sports and on-line poker. The revenue will be used to support the state pension fund. The bill was sponsored by Rep. Adam Koenig (R-Erlanger), a longtime supporter of sports betting in the Blue Grass State. Koening estimates that sports betting will generate at least $22.5 million in new state tax revenue each year....

In a meeting in Frankfort Friday, the Pari Mutuel Wagering Taxation Task Force, led by State Senator and majority floor leader Damon Thayer, outlined the advantages of allowing Kentucky-breds in claiming races to receive purse supplements. Claiming races currently are not eligible to have Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund (KTDF) supplements added to their purses. "You need claiming horses in order to provide the opportunities for allowance and stakes horses," said Rick Hiles, president of the Kentucky Horsemen's Benevolent & Protective Association (KHBPA). "It's time to acknowledge their important role and...

A special legislative committee charged with studying the taxes and rates paid by Kentucky racetracks, including the tax rates on profits from Historical Horse Racing (HHR) machines, seems set on recommending the status quo rather than a tax increase. That's good news for the state's racing and breeding industries, which have flourished since HHR machines were introduced in the state some ten years ago. The Pari-Mutuel Wagering Taxation Task Force met Monday and the meeting turned into something of a cheerleading session for the sport, its economic impact and the...

A Pari-Mutuel Wagering Taxation Task Force has been established in the Kentucky General Assembly to "study the taxes and rates related to horse racing, the impact that changing the rates would have, and the funds relating to the horse industry which receive historical horse racing tax receipts [and] determine if any changes should be made." The task force will be co-chaired by Kentucky State Senator Damon Thayer and House of Representatives member Adam Koenig. The Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP) issued a statement in support of the action Tuesday: "The...

    The "emergency" bill to legalize historical horse race (HHR) gaming by defining "pari-mutuel wagering" to include previously run races passed the Kentucky State Senate late Tuesday afternoon 22-15, with one senator not casting a vote. Proponents of the bill are aiming to align HHR in a way that they believe will make the slots-like form of gaming constitutionally legal so the machines can keep generating $2.2. billion in annual handle. The Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund's purse-money cut from HHR is three-quarters of 1% of that handle. Senators speaking...

The bill that attempts to legalize historical horse race (HHR) gaming in Kentucky by inserting a one-paragraph definition of "pari-mutuel wagering" into an existing state statute advanced with a favorable recommendation out of the Senate Licensing and Occupations Committee Feb. 4. SB120 will now be scheduled for a hearing before the full Kentucky Senate. Proponents testified that Kentucky's racing industry is in danger of economic devastation without the support of HHR to bolster purses, and that defining "pari-mutuel" for the first time within state laws is the appropriate way to...

Still reeling from a decision by the Kentucky Supreme Court that ruled that Historical Horse Racing (HHR) machines are illegal, the racing and breeding industries in the state have continued to work behind the scenes to find a way to keep the gaming machines operating. The machines have proved so popular that they handled $2.2 billion during the most recent fiscal year and contribute tens of millions annually to purses. The court ruled that the machines, which resemble slot machines, did not fall under the legal definition of pari-mutuel gambling...