Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act

Editor's note: This is the latest in a series in the TDN to help industry members better understand the procedures under the new HISA and HIWU regulations. TDN: Please explain the rules on what happens during a Provisional Suspension. Are my employees still allowed to care for my horses? Can my assistant trainer be in charge? Or do I have to have them moved to an entirely new barn with new help? HISA:It is true that there have been some changes in the procedures surrounding a Provisional Suspension, along with...

Every week, the TDN publishes a roundup of key official rulings from the primary tracks within the four major racing jurisdictions of California, New York, Florida and Kentucky. Here's a primer on how each of these jurisdictions adjudicates different offenses, what they make public (or not) and where. The TDN will also post a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from the same week. These will include decisions from around the country. California Track: Del Mar Date: 08/03/2023 Licensee: Kent Desormeaux, jockey Penalty: Three-day...

With oral arguments in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit looming in less than two months, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) Authority defendants in a two-year-old lawsuit spearheaded by the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (NHBPA) asserted in a legal brief Friday that the panel of judges should "dismiss this appeal or affirm the judgment" from a lower court that ruled the 2022 rewrite of the HISA law was constitutionally compliant. "Congress, the Executive, and all three federal courts that have considered the...

Every week, the TDN publishes a round-up of key official rulings from the primary tracks within the four major racing jurisdictions of California, New York, Florida and Kentucky. Here's a primer on how each of these jurisdictions adjudicates different offenses, what they make public (or not) and where. The TDN will also post a round-up of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from the same week. These will include decisions from around the country. CALIFORNIA Track: Del Mar Date: 07/23/2023 Licensee: Jose Valdivia, jockey Penalty: Three-day...

After Sunday's announcement that The Stronach Group (TSG) will close at the end of the year its flagship Northern California racetrack, Golden Gate Fields, the company at the helm of the sale has gone silent, ignoring all of TDN's requests for comment this week. To bring much-needed illumination on this seismic decision, the TDN spoke Thursday morning with Greg Ferraro, the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) chairman. Among several points raised, Ferraro shared his thoughts on the need for a fixed hub of racing in Northern California to secure the...

The North American Association of Racetrack Veterinarians (NAARV) is arguing for the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to overturn the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) on constitutional grounds because the law allegedly "places the racetrack veterinarians at a greater risk than other covered persons" from a due process standpoint. Chief among the assertions made by the NAARV in a 51-page "friend of the court" brief filed July 14 are that "initial findings of wrongdoing by a member of NAARV, pursuant to HISA, result in a...

The Texas judge handling the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (NHBPA) constitutionality lawsuit that is trying to halt the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) on Wednesday refused to grant an injunction that would delay the May 22 implementation of the Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) program. In issuing his order, United States District Court Judge James Wesley Hendrix of the Northern District of Texas (Lubbock Division) pointed out that it is the second time in two weeks that he has informed the plaintiffs in a court order that...

Next week at this time, we'll know if the sport is on the cusp of another Triple Crown sweep. Of all the potential excuses for GI Kentucky Derby winner Mage (Good Magic) not emerging victorious from the GI Preakness S., intense media pressure is unlikely to be one of them. You could make the argument that the diminutive, white-blazed chestnut with the endearing overbite has enjoyed one of the least-scrutinized post-Derby weeks of any winner in recent history. That's not so much because the spotlight on his accomplishment has dimmed....

In two separate court filings Thursday, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) Authority and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) both sharply criticized the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (NHBPA)'s decision to seek an injunction that would delay the May 22 implementation of the Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) program. What stood out was that neither the HISA Authority nor the FTC shied from trying to link the NHBPA's desire to maintain the "status quo" to the grim headlines that have dominated the sport over the past week. "Seven...

Every week, the TDN publishes a roundup of key official rulings from the primary tracks within the four major racing jurisdictions of California, New York, Florida and Kentucky. Here's a primer on how each of these jurisdictions adjudicates different offenses, what they make public (or not) and where. With the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) having gone into effect on July 1, 2022, the TDN will also post a roundup of the relevant HISA-related rulings from the same week. New York Track: Aqueduct Date: 04/13/2023 Licensee: Dylan Davis, jockey...

Kentucky's state senate adopted a resolution by voice vote Mar. 29 that will "urge" the overseers of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) and elected federal politicians "to review the funding methodology of HISA and ensure that they provide uniform treatment to all states," according to a summary of the measure posted on the web page of the Kentucky General Assembly. Senators Damon Thayer and John Schickel sponsored the resolution, which was both introduced and passed on Wednesday. The resolution describes itself as a means of "expressing concerns regarding...

After a series of high-profile issues jeopardized the very existence of our sport, a wide cross-section of leaders representing all aspects of the industry came together to support legislation to address long-standing safety issues in racing. Our legislators agreed change was needed and passed the bipartisan Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA), which included provisions for a governing body to oversee its implementation. The purpose was simple: to address a system that lacked integrity. Before HISA, horsemen endured a dysfunctional state-to-state patchwork of rules which were inconsistently enforced. Thanks to...