Lawmakers refuse to allow slots
??Animal welfare organizations are at work in Florida to eliminate greyhound racing, which has been banned in states including Massachusetts. The campaign accompanies a decline in bets on live racing. Wagers have dropped from nearly $1 billion in 1990 to $258 million last year in Florida, home to 12 of the 21 U.S. tracks that regularly hold live dog races, reported the Panama City News Herald.??
At the track in Ebro, the handle for dog racing has declined from $5.78 million in fiscal year 2005-2006 to $1.72 million in fiscal year 2012-2013, figures from the state’s Department of Professional Regulation show.??
“Our poker room has been the bread and butter,” said Rick Hess, whose family owns the track. “You go to the dog races in the 1980s, and you would have seen it was way better,” he said. “When they brought the lottery into the state, everything has gone down, down, down.”??
Despite the losses, Hess said the track continues to make a slight net profit thanks to a $600,000 tax credit. He said his family will keep live dog races as long as the track turns a profit, or until the sport is prohibited.??
But some experts say the days of dog racing in Florida are numbered. According to the Herald, conservative lawmakers oppose racing, but refuses to allow slots at the Ebro track, which could boost the sport. Washington County voters approved of a referendum to permit a plan called “decoupling,” which would allow the tracks to keep poker and slots and end racing.??
In its most recent legislative session, lawmakers shot down the measure, which is viewed as an expansion of gaming in the state.??
Carey Theil, executive director of the anti-racing group Grey2K USA, said, “When decoupling passes, it will lead to a slow and gradual end” of the industry.??
Racing fan Bobby Thrasher of Atlanta said the loss of dog racing would be a hardship for locals. “I’m sure it means a lot to the economy because there are a lot of people who work here, and a lot of people who train dogs,” he said.
