Columbus, OH – Saturday’s (March 7) second day of the U.S. Trotting Association’s Board of Directors annual meeting got off to an early start at 8:30 a.m. with the Registration Committee meeting prior to the Opening General Session of the full Board at 10 a.m.
In Registration, USTA Assistant Registrar Aimee Hock provided the committee with the 2025 Summary Report and Trends highlighted by increases in the Member Services Department work, attendance by Outreach staff at sales, and utilization of eSales. Hock also informed the assembly that ID Technician Jim Shupe retired last April, and that Mike Kimelman has been hired to service his territory of eastern PA, lower NY, and NJ.
USTA COO TC Lane made a presentation summarizing the multi-year genetic research and the results of those studies conducted by the UC Davis Veterinary Genetics Laboratory, in partnership with the USTA. The research evaluated genetic diversity, inbreeding levels, breeding practices, inherited health conditions, and parentage testing methods in the Standardbred population.
Lane also emphasized that the research supported transitioning from STR to SNP parentage testing, which provides greater accuracy and enables more advanced genetic analysis and breeding tools.
Director Dan Bittle made a motion, seconded by Dr. Woogen, to table a decision on SNP testing at this time.
A full report on the genomic and foal abnormalities details will be provided in the director’s dashboard at the conclusion of the annual meeting.
Next on the Registration agenda was a presentation by Dr. John Mossbarger regarding how Foal Sharing Agreements should be recorded or not by the USTA. President Williams suggested putting together a committee with Steve McCoy to evaluate the current rules, which may result in rule change proposal(s) next year.
The General Opening session had a busy agenda that included the introduction of five new directors – Roy Burns (District 1), Tina Schrock (District 5), Michael Carter (District 7), Andrew Demsky (District 8), and Rich Mattei (District 8A).
“The motivation of our Board and staff is the highest I’ve ever seen,” said President Russell Williams about his 30 years as a Board member in his annual report. He cited the work of the Standardbred Racing Investigative Fund and the Harness Racing Medication Collaborative in his remarks.
Williams explained that the organization’s financial situation is strong and gave an update on the work being done to challenge the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act while promoting the proposed Racehorse Health and Safety Act legislation supported by the USTA.
He then turned over the dais to Standardbred industry marketer Chris Tully for presentation of a new harness racing video game, Harness Tactics, that is in development.
“We need to attract new fans where they are,” emphasized Tully in explaining that the game will have the ability to appeal to diverse audiences.
Target dates for the release of the game are the alpha milestone by the end of March, the beta version ready for testing by the end of June, and release of the final version in October.
Russell added comments on how the game’s data could be linked to the USTA Pathway database and may have the potential for online wagering in the future.
Election of officers, who were all unopposed, reelected Chairperson Joe Faraldo, Vice Chairperson Mark Loewe, and Secretary Michele Kopiec. Dr. Andy Roberts was elected as Treasurer replacing Jim Miller, who did not seek reelection.
Executive Vice President/CEO Mike Tanner summarized his lobbying efforts in Washington, DC. In his meetings with legislators and their staffs, Tanner explained that many have told him, “We know HISA has problems, but we want to see what happens in the courts.”
Tanner cited Ty Higgins, the guest speaker at the Communications/Marketing meeting on Friday night (March 6) and reiterated Higgins’ compliments for the work done by the USTA’s social media team.
“We need to tell our own story before someone else does,” said Tanner reiterating advice given by Higgins. He also committed to improving communication from the USTA to the directors so that we can better utilize them to assist in telling our stories.
CFO Ally Ward gave the financial report followed by industry updates on the Harness Racing Medication Collaborative by Faraldo, Standardbred Transition Alliance by Don Marean, and legislative, regulatory, and the charitable efforts the American Horse Council by their President Julie Broadway.
The Board broke for the Recognition Luncheon shortly after noon.
At the luncheon, Willliams presented the President’s Award to Betty Holt who accepted for Wanda Polisseni, 20 Years of Service Awards to directors Mark Ford and Chris McErlean, as well as a 40 Years of Service Award to Faraldo.
After lunch, the afternoon began with the Racing Committee voting on seven rule change proposals.
In the Regulatory Committee update, Secretary Michele Kopiec discussed the USTA Officials Program, in which the USTA hosted the Racing Officials Accreditation Program at Eldorado Scioto Downs in June 2025, and online exam testing.
The 2026 program is planned for Lexington, KY (Sept. 27–Oct. 4). The USTA also conducted two Ohio-based continuing education programs with additional sessions planned for 2026.
Kopiec reported that the USTA recently implemented SpeedExam, a secure online testing platform, to enhance accessibility, efficiency, and exam security for driver/trainer testing.
Vice Chairperson Mark Loewe gave the Pari-Mutuel Committee presentation that provided an update on Graded Stakes, currently available in USTA pedigrees for races in the US and Canada, and soon to be shown in past performance lines for eTrack race pages and Pathway reports.
Loewe said that eight new, graded stakes and 36 restricted stakes have been added for 2026 and that the “restricted” grade will be further expanded to include more stake races including, sire stakes and next generation.
Michael Carter discussed the USTA Strategic Wagering Program that had more than $20 million in guaranteed pools with over $30 million wagered at 18 member tracks.
Steve Oldford gave an amateur driving club update.
Mike and Gail McNeely of VanGundy Insurance Agency, gave an in-depth overview of the disability income program with accidental death and dismemberment as well as Equine liability and mortality written by VanGundy, underwritten by Chubb insurance in the Driver/Trainer Committee update. They informed the directors that a 9% increase in rates will go into effect on May 1. Enrollment by April 1 will lock in the current, lower rate.
In the Fairs Committee update, Gabe Wand reminded all fairs to submit their matching funds grant applications.
The final meeting on Saturday was the Financial Committee.
Chairperson Ivan Axelrod fielded questions about the 2025 Audited Statements.
Next, the 2026 budget was reviewed page by page, noting the significant changes that were made since the November 2025 meeting.
There were discussions about credit card fees and USTA sponsorship of this year’s Breeders Crown at Eldorado Scioto Downs
A suggestion was made to consider additional funding for the Broadcast and Promotions Committee for utilization on national broadcasts, but no action was taken at this time.
Tanner spoke about the monthly expenses related to federal lobbying included in the budget for 2026 and 2027.
Williams explained that based on our funding levels, the USTA could have more seats on the American House Council Board but suggested that it is not deemed necessary at this time.
There were discussions on increasing IT personnel to pursue additional revenue opportunities, enticing top drivers to the World Driving Championship, capital items, investment fee pricing structure, district/annual meetings budgets, and exploring other potential revenue streams.
The submitted budget was approved by the Finance Committee without revision.
The three-day meeting concludes Sunday (March 8) with the Rules Committee at 9 a.m. followed by the Closing Session at 10 a.m. that will feature Committee Reports, approval of the budget, the President’s Closing Remarks and an announcement of the dates and location of the 2027 Board of Directors meeting.