from the Standardbred Owners Association of New York

Editor’s Note: On September 7, 2011, SOA President Joseph Faraldo testified on behalf of the Empire State Harness Horsemen’s Alliance before the New York State Senate Committees on Racing, Gaming and Wagering and Judiciary regarding the serious concerns posed by a contemplated amendment to N.Y.’s constitution which would legalize casino gambling in the State.

At the conclusion of his testimony, Mr. Faraldo was asked by the committees to explain the state of racehorse medication rules and drug testing in New York. The memorandum below, to various members of the legislature, referencing a topical article appearing in the online publication, Bloodhorse.com, supplements Mr. Faraldo’s testimony in response to the question posed.

I want to thank you again for the opportunity to testify at last week’s Senate hearing on the proposed constitutional amendment. While I am confident that my submitted testimony on that important issue accurately identified the horsemen’s position for the record, there was another issue discussed during questioning after my testimony — the recent legal case involving the NYS Racing & Wagering and out-of-competition testing — that I believe requires further clarification.

Quite frankly, we are grateful that you asked about the case, because clearly the upstate track owner who apparently raised the issue of drug testing in horse racing at your September 6th hearing unfairly characterized both the overall issue and, more specifically, the lawsuit brought against the Racing & Wagering Board.

First and foremost, you should know that there is no group of individuals with a more compelling and direct interest in protecting the integrity of horse racing than the horsemen. The security of our financial investments in this sport — from horses to farms to equipment — is directly related to ensuring that racing is conducted fairly and legally, and therefore we have every interest in making sure that racing is as well-regulated as possible. Any inference that the horsemen believe differently — whether it is specifically related to drug testing or any other regulatory requirement — is both unfair and simply not grounded in this factual reality.

Within this important context, we have sought to work closely and constructively with the Racing & Wagering Board on a wide range of regulatory issues. Unfortunately, on this particular issue (which we acknowledge was well intentioned, but badly handled), the Board chose not to work with us. As you can see from the below copied footnote #3 (page 3) from the judge’s decision, we horsemen simply sought input into the regulatory/rule-writing process, but our efforts were completely ignored by the Board and the new, unrealistic, unworkable regulations were subsequently put in place arbitrarily:

“On or about June 24, 2008, the Board solicited SOA’s review and comments to an earlier draft version of the OCTR’s [out-of-competition testing rules]. On or about July 3, 2008, SOA conveyed to the Board, in writing, various criticisms of the proposed regulations, which largely mirror petitioner’s arguments herein. The Board did not thereafter reply to petitioner’s concern. The next information the petitioners received was the pronouncement that the OCTR’s had been adopted by the Board.”

It is also extremely important to point out that the court’s decision (page 3) strongly reinforced our earlier point about the horsemen’s commitment to integrity in our sport and our understanding of the importance of drug testing:

“It is vital to comprehend, at the outset, that none of these parties are opposed to equine drug testing. All parties concur that drug testing is essential to the integrity of the harness horse racing industry, the betting public’s confidence, and the health of race horses.”

In light of these facts, you can see why we believe it is outrageous that the owner of Tioga Downs would seek to create the impression that the SOA of New York and other harness horsemen are not concerned about helping to resolve any issues with drugs in our sport. Furthermore, his suggestion that illegal drugs are an “epidemic” in harness racing is hyperbole of the worst sort, as it has absolutely no basis in objective fact.

I have attached for your review an article summarizing a new report that was just released by the National Association of Racing Commissioners International, which is the organization representing regulators across both thoroughbred and harness racing nationally. I would call your attention to the very first paragraph, which makes it clear that there is absolutely no evidence to support such sensational claims about an “epidemic” of drugging incidents affecting the integrity of racing:

“With very few exceptions, almost all race horses tested for drugs are found to be clean, a fact that undermines the credibility of those who peddle the perception that racing has an out of control drug problem,” RCI President Ed Martin said today in releasing an RCI report entitled Drugs in Racing 2010-The Facts.

NOTE: Also, in terms of setting the formal record straight, I believe I mentioned a statistic at the hearing of “less than 2% of horses racing in the US who tested positive.” I am pleased to report that it turns out that the actual number, as per this regulators’ report, is, in fact, only “0.015 percent of all samples tested.”

Once again, Senators, I can only speculate why the owner of Tioga Downs would besmirch the racing industry — and in light of the facts and the judge’s decision, it is obvious that these accusations are irresponsible and should call his own credibility into question — but I am grateful for the opportunity to address this issue again in greater detail.

As always, should you ever have any questions about this or any other matter related to harness racing in New York State, please don’t hesitate to call me at 718-544-6800 or our lobbyist, Joni Yoswein, at 212-233-5700. Thank you for letting me set the record straight on this important issue and for your continued interest in our industry.