Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act

The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act officially became law when President Donald J. Trump signed the COVID-19 relief and government funding legislation Sunday night. The legislation will establish national standards to promote fairness and increase safety in Thoroughbred racing nationwide. The HISA legislation will go into effect no later than July 1, 2022, but could be effective earlier following the formation of an independent national racing authority and approval of an anti-doping and medication control program and racetrack safety program by the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC will review the...

As the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act resurfaced last week as part of an omnibus spending bill passed by the House and Senate, the same questions were being asked all over again. What will the new way of doing things cost and who is going to pay for it? All anyone really knows at this point is that the states will be expected to foot the bill and their share will depend on how much racing there is in each state. Kentucky, with year-round racing, will have to pay more...

The $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill that was expected to pass Monday includes a provision that calls for the passage of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act. With the omnibus spending bill having received bipartisan support and with President Donald J. Trump expected to sign it, the legislation that would bring sweeping change to how the sport is regulated and policed appears to have cleared its final hurdle. Congressional leaders announced Sunday night that they had reached a deal on the stimulus package that included the horse racing act. It...

It's been an eventful year to say the least, and Wednesday morning, the crew of the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland wrapped up the biggest stories of 2020 and looked forward to the promise of a new year with an assist from trainer Brendan Walsh. Calling in via Zoom as the Green Group Guest of the Week for the second time, Walsh talked about the highly-anticipated return of barn star Maxfield (Street Sense), what his hopes are for the implementation of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act and trainees...

Brendan Walsh joined this week's TDN Writers' Room with his undefeated star Maxfield set to return in the Tenacious Stakes this weekend after a 7-month layoff.

by Thoroughbred Idea Foundation Editor's note: The following open letter to the industry was submitted by the Thoroughbred Idea Foundation, a think tank and advocacy group which aims to improve the sport of Thoroughbred racing for all stakeholders. The passage of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) would signal a prominent turning point for Thoroughbred racing in America. Regardless of where one has stood on the merits of the legislation over the years, its passage will bring to an end a generation of discord between industry participants, enabling our...

If the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) gets passed by the United States Senate and then signed into federal law, the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (NHBPA) could launch a legal challenge against it based on the alleged unconstitutionality of the independently overseen anti-doping, drug testing, and racetrack safety standard programs that the new federal law would create. Leroy Gessmann, who serves as both the NHBPA president and as Arizona HBPA's executive director, told commissioners at the Oct. 8 Arizona Racing Commission (AZRC) meeting that "this thing is...

A nominating committee--responsible for selecting members of the board of directors of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA), as well as members of its Anti-doping and Medication Control and Racetrack Safety committees--has been formed through the efforts of leading Thoroughbred industry stakeholders, including Breeders' Cup, Churchill Downs Incorporated, Keeneland Association, and The Jockey Club. HISA will be an independent, non-governmental regulatory body, run by an independent board, responsible for improving current regulations and bringing a new level of transparency to Thoroughbred racing. The nominating committee is made up of...

In addition to all the Stateside action this weekend--the final leg of the Triple Crown, Fall Stars Weekend at Keeneland and 11 Breeders' Cup "Win and You're In" events--the biggest race of the year in Europe will also be run with Sunday's G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp in Paris. Wednesday on the TDN Writers' Room podcast presented by Keeneland, TDN International Editor Kelsey Riley joined the crew as the Green Group Guest of the Week to talk about the much-anticipated showdown between Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) and...

By a unanimous Sep. 29 voice vote, the United States House of Representatives passed a years-in-the-making bill that, if eventually signed into law, will develop and implement anti-doping, medication control, drug testing, and racetrack safety standard programs enforced by an independent authority whose powers would supersede the long-standing state-by-state regulation of the sport. HR 1754, which has existed in various proposed forms since 2015 and was amended Sep. 9 to match the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) companion legislation that got introduced in the U.S. Senate that same day,...

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Martha McSally (R-AZ), and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) introduced the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act Wednesday to help set national standards to promote fairness, increase safety, and help preserve Thoroughbred racing. At a press conference last week in Lexington, the Horse Capital of the World, Senator McConnell joined U.S. Congressman Andy Barr (KY-06) and leading Kentucky stakeholders, including Keeneland, Churchill Downs Incorporated, Breeders' Cup Limited, and the Jockey Club in announcing the introduction of the bill. They also...

The Board of Directors of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) has voted to support passage of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020 (HISA). The action was taken Wednesday afternoon at a special meeting of the Board of the Directors. The HISA will improve the integrity and safety of Thoroughbred racing by requiring uniform safety and performance standards, including an anti-doping and medication control program and a racetrack safety program to be developed and enforced by an independent Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority. "We thank Senate Majority Leader...