Columbus, OH – On Sunday (Dec. 7), Chairperson Shawn Wiles and Directors Kim Crawford, Mark Ford, John Matarazzo, Ray Schnittker, and Mike Torcello hosted the annual District 8 meeting in conjunction with the Monticello-Goshen USHWA and NYSS banquet in Otterkill, NY.
The meeting included a discussion of and voting on the nine proposed rule and bylaw changes.
Following are the voting results of the 2026 proposals from the District 8 members in attendance:
- Resigning membership while under investigation — Approved
- Horse race fatalities reported to USTA — Approved
- Shoes off/shoes on — Rejected
- Horse retirement contribution from claims — Rejected
- Start caps for 2- and 3-year-olds — Rejected
- Deposit for appeals — Approved
- Stallion cap of 160 mares — Approved
- Standardbred as embryo transfer recipient mare — Rejected
- Executive committee composition — Approved
Shwan Wiles was re-elected as chairperson of District 8.
The remaining districts will meet during the month to discuss specific district topics and to vote on the proposals. The results of each district’s vote will be presented to the entire USTA Board of Directors at the annual meeting in March 2025. The full schedule of district meetings, as well as meeting details and recaps, may be found here.
Members are also encouraged to participate by voting online through their USTA accounts. Full instructions are available via this link.