In the wake of an amendment to the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act becoming law on Dec. 30, Lisa Lazarus, CEO of the HISA Authority, said she is optimistic about the future of the national agency now charged with regulating certain aspects of Thoroughbred racing.
The amendment was part of an omnibus spending bill passed by Congress late last month and signed into law by President Joseph Biden. It was designed to resolve questions raised by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which in November ruled the Act was unconstitutional in that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) delegated rule-making authority to a private, non-governmental entity. The FTC, which under the original law could accept or reject proposed rules from the Authority, now has the power to change the rules as it sees fit.
“We are delighted that Congress took the initiative to essentially correct the issue that the Fifth Circuit identified with the constitutionality of HISA, and we are feeling obviously very optimistic about HISA's future,” Lazarus said in a conference call with racing media on Jan. 5. “The HISA team and HISA board are committed to the mission and goals that HISA is trying to achieve.”
Attorneys for HISA have asked the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to vacate the ruling, rehear the case, or send it back to U.S. District Court in Texas, which originally ruled in HISA's favor. A second lawsuit, in which a District Court in Kentucky also ruled in HISA's favor, has been appealed to the Sixth District Court of Appeals in Cincinnati. That case was argued before the law was amended in December and a ruling is pending. Earlier this week, the court asked all parties to respond on how the amendment affects their position.
Lazarus said the amendment to the law – passed in a similar omnibus spending bill in December 2020 – set in motion efforts to get the Authority's Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) program back on track after the appellate ruling on a lawsuit brought by the National HBPA and affiliates postponed a planned Jan. 1, 2023, start-up. After the court's ruling that the Act was unconstitutional, the Federal Trade Commission said it would not approve the proposed ADMC rules because of the legal uncertainty.
“We resubmitted the (Anti-Doping and Medication Control) rules and are hopeful and optimistic that we will be able to implement them, probably around mid-March,” said Lazarus. She added that the timeline for approval from the FTC was dependent on publication of the rules in the Federal Register and only be approved after a public comment period of up to 60 days.
Lazarus said her focus going forward will be to reach out to those groups who oppose HISA or have joined in one of several lawsuits attempting to block it.
“For me, 2023 is going to be all about building trust,” Lazarus said, “because I genuinely believe that if we can build trust with those constituencies that are resentful or resistant to HISA … if we can bring the majority of the industry into a perspective where they accept or believe that HISA's goals are to make the industry better, or racing better, we can achieve our objectives.
“I don't think there's anybody who would ever say they are against safety and integrity,” Lazarus continued. “Those are obviously ideals and goals I think everyone in the industry shares. So the question really for me is how can I bring all constituency groups to a point where they trust that HISA's goal genuinely is to achieve safety and integrity.”
One of the states resisting HISA's regulatory oversight is Texas, whose racing commission – citing state law saying the Texas Racing Commission is the sole authority to regulate racing – blocked outgoing simulcast signals from Texas racetracks. Lazarus said she is disappointed Texas is not working with HISA so that it can resume interstate simulcasting.
“We think the law is extremely clear, given that there now is a federal law, that federal law pre-empts (state law), and that's been a view that essentially every other racing commission has accepted,” Lazarus said.
Finally, Lazarus, said, HISA is undergoing a revision of the racetrack safety rules that went into effect July 1, 2022. Those rules remain in effect outside of Texas and Louisiana.
“We are currently undergoing a revision of the racetrack safety rules, so obviously we are happy that we are able to continue enforcing that program,” she said. “We are going to continue to move forward. In our revision of the racetrack safety rules, we've been engaging with the horsemen's advisory group. We are asking the public to communicate, and we will share essentially the feedback that we get and how those rules evolve over time in what we ultimately submit to the Federal Trade Commission.”
The post Lazarus Optimistic About HISA’s Future, Hopeful For Mid-March Launch Of Anti-Doping And Medication Control Program appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
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