Efforts to add slot machines by Gretna Racing, which offers pari-mutuel Quarter Horse Barrel Races at its facility outside of Tallahassee, hit a wall May 18 when the Supreme Court of Florida ruled the facility’s owners didn’t have the authority.
Statistics in the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission annual report for 2015 reflect how integral revenue from slot machines is to purses for Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing at six racetrack casinos in the state.
A statewide referendum to allow a slots parlor adjacent to Suffolk Downs will move forward after the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled June 28 the question can be on the November ballot.
The Pennsylvania House June 22 passed an amendment that adds Internet gambling to a bill that would permit more slot machines in the state but stopped short of approving video gaming machines for bars, taverns, and private clubs.
Parties in a lawsuit over the state's denial of a request for slot machines at a simulcast and poker facility in Gadsden County made their cases before the Florida Supreme Court June 7.
More than $228 million was accrued for purses at six Pennsylvania racetracks in 2015 with almost 90% of the funds derived from slot machine revenue, according to an annual report that analyzes the racetrack gaming industry in the state.
A subcommittee of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission March 29 opted to delay a vote and instead solicit input on the percentage of revenue Thoroughbred and Standardbred purses and breeding funds get from casino gaming.
A strong push to decouple racing from gaming officially hit the wall with the end of this year's Florida legislative session March 11, but a horsemen's coalition said it fully expects the issue to come up again in 2017.
Legislation that would allow most pari-mutuel operations to end live racing and become slot-machine casinos or card rooms with simulcast wagering easily cleared the Florida House Finance and Tax Committee Feb. 29.
The Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association said it believes it can find common ground with Arlington as it moves into contract negotiations and also work with track officials to better position Illinois racing.
A state group that studies the impact of tax changes in Florida offered a general assessment Feb. 26 that decoupling horse racing from gaming would have minimal effect on pari-mutuel revenue for state government.
Legislation designed to modernize horse racing in Pennsylvania was signed into law Feb. 23 by Gov. Tom Wolf, who last fall threatened to shut down the industry because it couldn't pay for regulation.
Industry stakeholders will be among the speakers on the topic of decoupling when the Florida Thoroughbred Farm Managers holds its annual meeting Jan. 9 in Ocala.
Belmont Park would become home to a casino with 1,000 video lottery terminals under a plan put forward Dec. 29 by Nassau Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. But the plan is considered a longshot.
A pricey compact between Florida Gov. Rick Scott and the Seminole Tribe allows for the decoupling of casino gambling and pari-mutuel racing, but whether that provision becomes law remains to be seen.
Illinois racetracks, which aren't permitted to have gaming machines, have watched about 5,100 other locations install slot machines which, according to a report, aren't subject to typical casino-style regulation.
State officials in Pennsylvania said they expect lawmakers the week of Nov. 16 to consider legislation that would, in part, stabilize the funding of horse racing regulation.
Racing stakeholders in Pennsylvania are working with Gov. Tom Wolf's administration to devise a funding plan for regulation in the wake of ongoing declines in pari-mutuel handle in the state.
Horsemen's groups are rallying to head off a move to decouple live racing from casino-style gambling at pari-mutuel facilities in Florida. Currently, tracks with slot machines must also offer live racing.
A New York State panel has tapped a fourth location for a full-blown casino as the state marches closer to a final set of approvals for a casino expansion.
Gretna Racing, which won a license to offer Quarter Horse barrel racing as a steppingstone to apply for slot machines, was dealt a setback when the Florida First District Court of Appeal Oct. 2 reversed its earlier opinion.
The Illinois Racing Board Aug. 27 granted Maywood Park permission to scrap the final three months of its harness season, a controversial decision with implications for the coming year's Thoroughbred dates.
The West Virginia racing industry will pursue several initiatives during the 2016 legislative session, including statutory changes that would lower the minimum number of racing dates for which tracks must apply each year.
Pennsylvania lawmakers are examining legislation that would lower the minimum number of live racing days required at racetrack gaming facilities, and also allow each track to install slot machines at up to four OTW parlors.
The Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association is at odds with Churchill Downs Inc. over the company's plans to reduce the number of races it offers at Arlington International Racecourse.
The owner of an East St. Louis, Ill., casino plans to purchase nearby Fairmount Park provided Illinois lawmakers agree to allow a gambling expansion that would bring slot machines to the state's five racetracks.
Atlantic City's monopoly on casino gambling began to crumble June 1 as lawmakers introduced a bill that would let voters decide whether to allow three new casinos in northern New Jersey.
Live Thoroughbred racing returned to the Chicago area Feb. 20 as Hawthorne Race Course began its season amid frigid weather and an equally challenging financial and political landscape.
A white paper prepared by the Rutgers Equine Science Center released Nov. 7 shows a continued loss of ground for the New Jersey horse racing industry and calls for a partnership between racing and casinos.
The Thoroughbred industry in Massachusetts will receive the lion's share of future expanded gaming revenue to be collected and allocated by the Race Horse Development Fund.
The Aurora Sentinel reports that more than 130,000 signatures have been presented to the Colorado secretary of state asking for a November vote on expanded gambling at Arapahoe Park in Aurora, Col.
Hialeah Park has announced a major expansion of its casino and indicated it will continue to work toward holding a Thoroughbred meet.
A report that Calder Casino & Race Course is preparing to close its poker room could be an indication that Calder and South Florida neighbor Gulfstream Park will soon receive state approval for their deal on racing dates.
The Indiana Horse Racing Commission June 26 granted approval to Centaur, which owns the two racetracks in the state, to proceed with refinancing that won't impact slots revenue that goes to purses and breed programs.
The Pennsylvania racing fund, which pays for regulation of horse racing in the state, has been misused by the state Department of Agriculture and is close to bankruptcy, according to a state audit released June 18.
Gaming and Leisure Properties, a real estate investment trust spinoff of Penn National Gaming Inc., said May 14 it has an agreement to purchase The Meadows Racetrack and Casino in western Pennsylvania for $465 million.
The Florida Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association said May 9 it has given Gulfstream Park recommendations regarding a Gulfstream plan for ending head-to-head weekend racing with neighboring Calder.
The New Hampshire House of Representatives said no dice to casino gambling again May 7, handing supporters their third defeat in two months and dashing hopes that live Thoroughbred racing might return to Rockingham Park.
An official with Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots assured Louisiana lawmakers May 6 that owner Churchill Downs Inc. will make the improvements required under a conditional license it received from state racing commission.
The Louisiana State Racing Commission April 29 granted a one-year conditional license to Churchill Downs Inc. for Fair Grounds. The company must provide a list of improvements to be made in the next 60 days.
The Louisiana State Racing Commission has scheduled a special meeting for May 1 to consider the license Churchill Downs Inc. holds to operate Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots and a ring of OTB parlors with video poker.
Total purses generated by slot machines in Pennsylvania in 2013 dropped 6.57% from the previous year according to a benchmark report released April 9 by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board.
Prairie Meadows Racetrack & Casino is opposing a proposed casino in Jefferson, Iowa, that it estimates would reduce its gaming revenue by nearly $13 million.
Kentucky lawmakers will have another option when considering a possible constitutional amendment to place before voters that would pave the way for casino gambling.
Overnight purses at Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots have been reduced 10% for the rest of the current race meet, track officials said Feb. 20.
A multi-party agreement has paved the way for a three-year funding model for Hastings Racecourse in British Columbia, Canada, officials said Feb. 17. The 2014 Thoroughbred meet is expected to begin in late April or early May.
A Pennsylvania lawmaker's proposal to gut the Race Horse Development Fund supported by revenue from slot machines generated a strong response from the Pennsylvania Equine Coalition.
Casinos at five racetracks in Kentucky would generate about $86 million a year for the horse industry, a sponsor of expanded gambling legislation told the House Licensing and Occupations Committee Jan. 15.
Centaur Gaming and horse racing industry stakeholders have won approval for a long-term gaming revenue distribution agreement that will allow the company to refinance in 2014.
Hialeah Park has begun its fifth consecutive Quarter Horse racing season and is preparing for a year in which it might have its biggest chance yet to regain a Thoroughbred racing license.
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