Running a race track in New Mexico these days is not for the faint of heart. The industry has to deal with growing competition from sports betting and casinos, according to the Associated Press.
New Mexico law bars residents from betting on races held at any of the state’s five tracks, but they can wager in races in neighboring states.
Track owners and horse breeders say this restriction has affected spending for feed, fuel and labor by almost 25 percent. This in turn has reduced the number of races and the number of horses being bred.
Izzy Trejo, the Racing Commission’s executive director, told a panel of lawmakers that horse racing no longer exists in a world where fans flood tracks and later bet in simulcast races.
“We used to be king of the hill back in the ’40s, ’50s and ’60s. That’s no longer the case,” Trejo said. “There are no more golden goose eggs for horse racing. Right now we’re merely going to be picking up crumbs to try to make the cookie complete with the sports wagering, online wagering, advance deposit wagering.”
Trejo asserted that New Mexico needs to permit online betting like other states. “We’ve got to get out of the dark ages here in New Mexico,” he said.
University of New Mexico economics professor David Dixon said the economic impact was around $677 million in 2016. The real economic value results when horse owners, breeders and the tracks spend money on feed, fuel, veterinarian services, other supplies and payroll.
Tom Goncharoff, president of the New Mexico Horse Breeders Association, said horse sales have been setting records over the past two years. He pointed to a recent sale in Kentucky in which yearlings were sold for over $1 million each.
“The auction prices are through the roof,” he said. “There is demand for a good horse and the money is there for a good horse, and that’s encouraging.”
Goncharoff said it’s time to update its sports betting laws. The drawback is that changes require renegotiation of the tribal compacts.
Rep. Antonio Maestas, chair of the Legislature’s Economic Development and Policy Committee, has begun speaking to some tribal leaders about potentially reconsidering those parts of the compacts that are seen as outdated.
Purse money for New Mexico races has remained steady—between $52 million and $55 million a year—and expanding the opportunity for more online wagering would increase that figure, industry officials testified.
