In order to cover the cost the Horseracing Integrity And Safety Authority has assessed to the state of New York, a per-start fee will be implemented at NYRA tracks beginning on July 14.
HISA has approved a structure which will equally split the payment responsibilities of New York's $1.6 million assessment between the New York Racing Association and the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association.
According to Pat McKenna, NYRA's vice president of communications, NYRA will pay its $800,000 in HISA fees via monthly payments out of its operating budget.
Confirmed by William Alempijevic, the executive director of NYTHA, the horsemen's organization will begin charging a per-start fee in order to cover its $800,000. The program will begin at Saratoga on July 14, and NYTHA will be reimbursing the owners of horses placing fourth through last, according to Alempijevic.
The per-start fee for each NYRA track is as follows: $90 at Saratoga Race Course, $70 at Belmont Park, and $50 at Aqueduct.
Meanwhile, other states have turned to different methods to pay their assessed portion of the HISA fees.
California announced that it will pay its $1.4 million assessment for 2022 via advanced deposit wagering revenue, to be split equally between Thoroughbred horsemen (purse revenue) and Thoroughbred racetracks (commissions).
Maryland stakeholders agreed to divide the 2022 cost of HISA as follows: 50 percent track, 44 percent horsemen (purse account), and six percent from the state-bred fund. No starter fees will be charged.
According to the TDN, two other states have taken on the burden of paying HISA fees without charging horsemen: Colorado and Virginia.
Other states, including Kentucky, have yet to decide how the HISA fees will be funded.
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