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Senate committee hears cleanup bill from Horse Racing Commission to modernize state racing rules
Summary
A public hearing was held on House Bill 1327, a commission-requested cleanup and modernization package for horse racing that would change commission governance, wagering rules and fee structures; the Horse Racing Commission and industry representatives testified in support and no vote was taken.
House Bill 1327, a commission-requested update to Washington law governing horse racing, received a public hearing Wednesday before the Senate Business, Financial Services, Gaming & Trade Committee.
The bill, introduced to the committee by committee staff (Clint McCarthy), would change governance and wagering rules for the Washington State Horse Racing Commission and adjust fee and distribution provisions for licensees. "The bill before you is House Bill 1327 concerning horse racing. This agency requests legislation from the Washington State Horse Racing Commission," said Clint McCarthy, staff to the committee.
The measure would remove a requirement that one of the three commissioners be a resource breeder; bar commission employees from simultaneously working at racetracks they oversee; permit commissioners to wager on simulcast races held outside Washington if those races are not under the commission’s jurisdiction; and authorize the commission to award grants to equestrian nonprofits or youth equine organizations from excess funds at the end of the fiscal biennium. It would also repeal a long-standing provision authorizing the commission to pay one-half of one percent collected from new licensees to reimburse capital costs for new racetrack construction.
The bill would change race-day and pari-mutuel rules. Current statute caps live races per race day at 11; HB 1327 would remove that upper limit and requires licensees to pay a $500 fee for each race regardless of annual gross receipts. The bill revises thresholds and percentages for licensee withholdings: the threshold for paying 1.3% of daily gross receipts annually would fall from $50 million to $20 million, and licensees with daily gross receipts under $20 million would pay 1.8% of daily gross receipts. The allowable retention percentage from pari-mutuel receipts would be adjusted in tiers and the statute’s conditions for disseminating imported simulcast race card programs would be relaxed for licensed class 1 associations (for example, Emerald Downs). HB 1327 would increase the commission’s annual fund available for equine industry development and facility upgrades from $300,000 to $500,000. A fiscal note is available.
Representative Dan Schmick, who described his experience on the Horse Racing Commission while introducing the bill to senators, urged support and said the changes “update the statute to reflect the current state of horse racing.”
Representatives of the Horse Racing Commission testified in support. "This bill is our regulatory cleanup bill," said Amanda Benton, executive secretary of the Washington State Horse Racing Commission. Doug Moore, chair of the Horse Racing Commission, told the committee the measure will help modernize practice after several decades without a comprehensive statutory update.
Committee members asked clarifying questions about how the bill differs from the Senate version (staff said language is the same as Senate Bill 5563 previously introduced) and about specific deleted or changed provisions, including the revenue-sharing language tied to new track construction that dates back to Emerald Downs' financing.
No final action or vote occurred; the committee paused consideration and moved to public testimony and other bills on the agenda.
Ending note: staff and commission witnesses said the bill is intended to streamline outdated distinctions that reflect an era with multiple active tracks and to align statute with current industry conditions.
