February 2021 Issue

The News East Coast Horse Owners Need To Know OUR TH YEAR 993 - PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT 280 LANC., PA 17604 Vol. 28 No. 1 February 2021 (Continued on page 23) Inside... By Amy Worden Advocates are praising the passage of the Horseracing Integ- rity and Safety Act (HISA) as the most important equine welfare legislation to ever become feder- al law. The HISA, which is aimed at curbing doping of thorough- bred racehorses and improving track safety, was signed into law by President Trump as part of the COVID-19 Relief Bill on December 27. “It’s a game changer,” said Valerie Pringle, campaign manager for equine protection for the Hu- mane Society of the United States. “Before you had 38 states determin- ing what drugs, the amounts and the penalties. Some states were better than others. Now you have one set of rules like major sports leagues.” Although the rate of track deaths has dipped over the past 20 years, to 1.53 per 1,000 starts, it still means hundreds of deaths from injury or drug-related med- ical conditions, according to the Jockey Club and news reports. “This is a watershed moment for our sport,” James L. Gaglia- no, chief operating officer of the Jockey Club, told The New York Times. “We have a chance to reg- ulate our sports at high standards. If you don’t have safe and clean sport, you don’t have anything.” The law will establish an independent authority under the Federal Trade Commission, that will establish uniform rules, testing and penalties to address the abuse of drugs that mask pain, contributing factors to frequent fatalities like the more than 66 horses that died at Santa Anita racetrack between 2018 and 2019. ‘Game Changer’: Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Act Becomes Law The law also stipulates that the United States Anti-Doping Agency, the entity that oversees Olympic sports, will handle drug testing, in- vestigations and the enforcement of any civil sanctions for violations at racetracks, said Marc T. Summers, general counsel for The Jockey Club. It will also be charged with accrediting testing laboratories. Advising the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority will be two committees: one devoted to drugs and another to developing standards to improve track safety. Bob Baker, executive director of the Missouri Animal Alliance, said better track surfaces will prevent injuries. “Some tracks keep surfaces hard to draw crowds because horses race faster, but if they are too hard there’s more concussion to limbs which leads to injuries and to the need for drugs to mask pain,” said Baker, an expert on race track doping. The law applies only to thor- oughbred race tracks, not stan- dardbred or Quarter horse tracks. However, the law contains an opt- in provision for each state racing commission to elect to have additional breeds covered by the law, and the financial implications for state racing commissions are such that many commissions will have no choice except to bring Standardbred and Quarter Horse racing into the federal fold. Implications for Mid-Atlantic There are some 25 thor- oughbred racetracks operating in the mid-Atlantic region. Racing industry officials in some states say existing regulations in their regions are already in line with many of the regulatory proposals of HISA. “Virginia already has strict medication and safety regulations in accordance with the MidAtlantic Racetracks StrategicAlliance which has enacted strict safety and integ- rity rules amongst the participating tracks in the MidAtlantic,’ said. Jill Byrne, Vice President of Racing Operations at Colonial Downs, Virginia’s only thoroughbred track. Nevertheless, she added: “Consistent regulations for the safety and integrity of horse racing throughout all racing jurisdictions is certainly a step in improving the industry.” What’s Driving USTA Objection to Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act? In this 2005 file photo, Smarty Jones works at Parx in Philadelphia, PA. A new law aims to protect thoroughbred race horses from catastrophic injury by instituting one set of rules nationwide, curbing doping and improving enforcement and racetrack surfaces. By Suzanne Bush As 2020 lurched to an end, a hopeful nation looked ahead to a New Year that might deliver something other than death by COVID. Like busy elves in Santa’s workshop, legislators in Washington were wrapping up some business before the dawn of 2021, putting the final touches on little goodies that could be tucked into the major spending bill that would keep the government run- ning. And so it was on December 27 that President Donald Trump signed into law the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA), which was part of the nearly 6,000-page, $2.3 trillion omnibus spending bill that became law at 8:10 p.m. It is frequently the case that not everyone is happy with holiday gifts. Like HISA. The Thoroughbred Racing Industry embraced it enthusiastically. The United States Trotting Association (Continued on page 21) Check out our Barns, Arenas, Footing feature! … pgs. 8-18 ‘Rescue’ owner charged with neglect faces new charges … pg. 4 Rutgers has the nation’s only student run mounted patrol … pg. 7 Philadelphia Urban Riding Academy launches, seeks home … pg. 6 …and much more!