The Texas Racing Commission met on February 9 to amend or repeal historical racing guidelines. The agency could have kept the guidelines, thereby risking its own and the state’s racing industry’s demise. Or it could have dismissed the rules, assuring the agency would continue to receive funding and racetracks could move forward with plans for the upcoming race seasons. Instead, a Cameron County judge issued a restraining order, the result of a lawsuit filed by the Texas Greyhound Association, preventing commissioners from taking any action at all. Commission Chair Rolando Pablos said, “We will wait to see what the courts decide.” Commissioner Robert Schmidt added, “No one anticipated the lawsuit. Now we let the legal process play out.”
Texas Greyhound Association officials said they sought the restraining order to get a legal opinion on historical racing. A hearing on the issue will be held February 18 in the 107th District Court in Cameron County. “We just want the court to decide whether historical racing is legal,” said association President David Peck. Wes Melcher, owner of the Double Infinity Ranch in Sulphur Springs, said, “This is definitely a victory for the horsemen today. The most important thing is we get more time. This is all about political maneuvering and so many people’s lives and jobs are at stake.” Texas Thoroughbred Association Executive Director Mary Ruyle stated, “We are in limbo while we wait to see what this means, but it’s a great thing. It can only help us.”
The battle is over historical racing machines that replay past races with slot-machine-like sounds and symbols. The devices do not indicate horse names, dates or tracks. In 2014, some lawmakers asked the commission not to approve rules allowing historical racing. When commissioners did approve the rules, lawmakers sued the agency and threatened to stop funding or dissolve it. An Austin judge, agreeing with a lawsuit filed by Travis County bingo groups, stopped racetracks from installing the machines, stating the legislature, not the commission, should determine the future of the games. The Texas Horsemen’s Partnership appealed the ruling and that lawsuit is pending in court.
Last December, commissioners voted again to leave historical racing guidelines in place, although by then Governor Greg Abbott had selected two new commissioners, including Pablos. If legislators defund the commission, it would have two shut down and racetracks statewide would have to end racing, which happened for one day last fall. As it now stands, the commission is funded only through February 16.
One of the pending lawsuits challenges how the Legislative Budget Board allocates funding for the commission, which collects millions of dollars each year in fees paid by racetracks and license holders, including owners, trainers and jockeys. That money is turned over to the state, which allocates it back to the commission. The lawsuit claims the board has the sole authority “to withhold all funds appropriated” for salaries and other services at the racing commission. “Without the ability to spend these funds, the Racing Commission cannot perform any of its basic administrative or regulatory functions and, as a consequence, the Texas horse racing industry cannot operate,” according to the lawsuit. Furthermore, it states, “The LBB has made clear that it will not permit the Racing Commission to spend its essential funds until the agency repeals its rules allowing a form of parimutuel wagering called Historical Racing.”
State Senator Jane Nelson, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee and serves on the budget board, previously said the commission never had the authority to allow historical racing. “If we do not hold them accountable, we are no better than Washington, D.C., where agencies just make up laws, ignore the Constitution and circumvent the people’s elected representatives,” she said.
Unfortunately, thousands of Texans who work as veterinarians, jockeys, grooms, breeders and more will be affected. According to state figures, the horse racing industry contributes $5.5 billion to the Texas economy and provides 36,000 jobs. Industry estimates show taxpayers may have to pay out millions in unemployment benefits if racetracks are forced to close due to lack of regulation.
Southern Methodist University political science professor Cal Jillson noted, “The racing industry is very frustrated that elected political authorities in Texas have been consistently anti-gambling. There’s a sense in which Texas is a small-government state in some instances, but a nanny state in others, dictating what people can and cannot do.” He continued, “The Racing Commission has been resisting elected political authorities because they see other racing and gambling opportunities that would benefit Texas. They’re considering whether to keep pushing back to call the bluff. There’s an element of brinksmanship to this.”
Noted Lone Star Park President Scott Wells, “We are in favor of whatever is best for the Texas horse industry. But the politics are played out in such a way that we are at the mercy of the politicians in this matter.”
