Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission on Tuesday (April 26) voted unanimously to not collect and remit fees to the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority, whose Racetrack Safety Program takes effect for Thoroughbred racing July 1 under the federal Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020.

PHRC officials said state statute doesn’t allow the commission to charge the fees, which, for the final six months, will total about $1.2 million for the state’s three Thoroughbred tracks. Standardbred racing is not covered under the federal law, which is largely referred to as HISA.

Tom Chuckas, the PHRC Thoroughbred bureau director, said HISA has not yet provided a budget for its Anti-Doping and Medication Control Program, which is to take effect Jan. 1, 2023. All state racing regulatory agencies that agree to collect and remit fees must do so for one year, meaning they would have to commit before seeing the budget for next year.

PHRC chairman Russell Redding, the state Department of Agriculture secretary, said the commission made clear that it supports the goals of HISA regarding the health and safety of equine and human participants and overall industry integrity, but “there is a significant level of uncertainty” in details, auditing and budgets.

Before the vote, the PHRC solicited comments from officials at racetracks, which must develop a formula and collect the fees from stakeholders should a racing regulatory agency not be able to or not want to do so. Chris McErlean, vice president of racing for Penn National Gaming Inc., noted tracks will have to spend additional money on equipment and staff to satisfy the HISA rules, and suggested the PHRC examine ways in which the HISA costs can be incorporated in commission budgets in the future.

In other business at the meeting, Chuckas reported that staff had conducted 198 out-of-competition tests since the last PHRC meeting in late March, including 91 at Hollywood Casino at The Meadows and 31 at training facilities near The Downs at Mohegan Sun Pocono. He said 64 vehicle searches at The Meadows in early April resulted in seizure of some drug paraphernalia and expired medications, and five barn searches later in April found expired medications. He said the cases were referred to the judges for action.

Scott Lishia, director of racing at The Meadows, said the racing surface was reconditioned during the annual one-week shutdown in April and that a new tractor had been purchased for surface maintenance. He also said The Meadows has a new ambulance service to handle on-track emergencies, and that a safety training session was held recently after a morning of qualifying races.

The Meadows also has begun operating a Lasix barn, where horses are treated and remain until they need to report to the paddock, Lishia said.