FTC

Bill Walmsley, Jon Moss, and the Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association for Iowa filed suit against the Federal Trade Commission to "stop the illegally constituted Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA)" on Thursday, according to a press release from the National HBPA. The case, Bill Walmsley, et. al. v. Federal Trade Commission, was filed in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas. "Congress cannot outsource regulatory authority to a private organization--unaccountable to the American people--that has the power to create rules, levy fines, and adjudicate disputes," said...

An Amarillo Division federal judge in Texas on Thursday ordered the most recently filed lawsuit out of four active nationwide cases all trying to overturn the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) to be transferred to the Lubbock Division that is currently handling the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (NHBPA)'s similar and recently remanded complaint. The Apr. 6 order by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk (Northern District of Texas, Amarillo Division) comes more than eight months after the litigation was initiated on July 29, 2022, and just one day...

Edited Press Release New and enhanced anti-doping regulations took effect in U.S. Thoroughbred horse racing Monday following the Federal Trade Commission's approval of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority's (HISA) Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) Program. HISA's ADMC Program, administered by the Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit (HIWU), brings all testing and results management under one national authority, standardizes the categories of substances laboratories test for and institutes clear and consistent penalties for violations. In its authority as the independent administrator of the ADMC Program, HIWU is introducing to the...

The recently amended federal lawsuit spearheaded by the state of Louisiana against the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) Authority and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is facing a new challenge from the HISA Authority defendants, who filed a Mar. 6 motion to strike the latest version of the complaint based on allegations that the plaintiffs are "improperly" attempting to use federal rules of civil procedure to turn the case to their advantage. The chief beef in the HISA Authority's Mar. 6 "motion to strike" filed in U.S. District Court...

"Sometimes, government works." With those words, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has upheld the constitutionality of the Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA), setting up a potential court battle in the U.S. Supreme Court. In short, the Sixth Circuit has ruled that the language added to the bill at the end of 2022 to address concerns of unconstitutionality were sufficient to alleviate those concerns. The plaintiffs in the Sixth Circuit case were comprised of the state of Louisiana; Oklahoma and its racing commission, plus...

Four weeks out from the anticipated effective date for the Anti-Doping and Medication Control Program (ADMC), the Authority overseeing the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) is stepping up its awareness campaign so industry participants can be properly prepared for a sweeping change in regulatory protocols. "We are officially on the one-month countdown to what we are confident will be the launch of our ADMC program on Mar. 27," Lisa Lazarus, the chief executive officer for the HISA Authority, said during a Monday video press conference. "Everyone is sort of...

The Congressional amendment to the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) at the end of last year--affording the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) more rule-making governance--has not yielded a pause on the legal maneuverings surrounding the law. Already this year, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied a motion by the HISA Authority for that court to vacate its recent opinion that HISA is unconstitutional, and instead sent two different cases back down to the district court level. In response, the Texas Racing Commission--which has so far barred the federal law...

The Association of Racing Commissioners International (ARCI) has formally asked the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to set aside and temporarily not approve proposed anti-doping and medication control rules proposed by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) until the constitutionality of the HISA Act is determined by the Courts. "This has nothing to do with wanting uniform rules or having a central rule-making authority, two things the ARCI supports," said Ed Martin, ARCI President. "This all has to do with avoiding a situation where an enforcement action is overturned because...

Edited Press Release The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has published the resubmitted Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) rules to the Federal Register, initiating a 14-day public comment period, according to a press release from HISA Friday morning. The FTC now has 60 days to approve or deny the proposed rules. HISA's draft ADMC rules were initially rejected by the FTC in late 2022 due to ongoing legal uncertainties. HISA resubmitted the rules for consideration by the FTC to give the agency more authority over...

Facing a United States Court of Appeals decision from the Fifth Circuit that the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) is unconstitutional and battling three similar lawsuits in various stages within the federal court system, the HISA Authority and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) were informed Monday that a U.S. District Court judge in Texas won't grant those defendants a requested stay that would halt the briefing schedule in that case pending a final resolution of the Fifth Circuit order. "No Good Cause Exists to Stay This Action," wrote U.S....

With the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit set to hear oral arguments Dec. 7 in a case that seeks to reverse a lower court's decision to dismiss a constitutional challenge of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA), the two opposing sides have filed new documentation pertaining to a separate but related Nov. 18 decision by the Fifth Circuit that did, in fact, declare HISA unconstitutional. Although it's tough at this stage to get a consensus on what might happen with HISA over the next six...