A Board of no fewer than 11 and no more than 15 Directors supervises the FTHA and each year, five positions are filled on a rotating basis. For 2024, Incumbent Owner/Directors Chester Bishop, Jonathan Green, and Teresa Palmer were re-elected.  Incumbent Trainer/Director Ron Spatz was re-elected, and new to the Board is Owner/Director Robert Cotran.

“I was honored to be elected to the Board. I am aware of some of the obstacles that racing is facing in the future,” said new member Robert Cotran. “My goal is to work with our horsemen's group in dealing with these obstacles–all for the betterment of racing–which is everyone's goal.”

Joe Orseno was elected unanimously for his third term as FTHA President. Jon Green was appointed as First Vice President and David Rousso as Second Vice President. The new board will take office effective immediately.

Owner/Directors include: Gerardo Amado, Chester Bishop, Thomas Cannell, Robert Cotran, Jonathan Green, Adam Lazarus, Teresa Palmer, David Rousso and Jeffrey Siskin. Trainer/Directors are: Patrick Biancone, Kathy Davey, David Fawkes, Joe Orseno, Terri Pompay and Ron Spatz.

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“Once again, the legislative sponsors of last year's breeding and racing development program stepped up in a big way,” said FTBOA president George Isaacs. “I'd like to personally thank Marion County's Representative Stan McClain [R-Ocala] and Senator Blaise Ingoglia [R-Spring Hill] for continuing their support of this program. We have also enjoyed support from the state's legislative and industry leaders, including Representative Lawrence McClure [R-Dover].”

HB 7073 now goes to the desk of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for further action.

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“We are always looking for stallions we know will raise the bar in Florida,” said Pleasant Acres Stallions Owner Joe Barbazon. “We've had our eye on Verifying since he ran in the GI Champagne S. at Belmont. Not only has he shown athleticism and talent during his career, he has also lived up to his impeccable pedigree.”

Verifying joins stallions Bodexpress (Bodemeister), Chess Chief (Into Mischief), Curlin's Honor (Curlin), Doppelganger (Into Mischief), Gone Astray (Dixie Union), Gunnevera (Dialed In), Leinster (Majestic Warrior), Magic on Tap (Tapit), Neolithic (Harlan's Holiday), No Never No More (Scat Daddy), Simplification (Not This Time) and Sweetontheladies (Twirling Candy), at the farm located just northwest of Ocala.

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First things first-it's important to remember that any member of Congress can introduce a bill. They write the language, file the bill, and voila it's been introduced. Just in the 118th Congress, which began in the beginning of 2023, more than 10,000 bills have been introduced. Of those more than 10,000 bills, only 14 have become law. It's important to have that perspective to truly understand why the likelihood of this bill ever becoming law is next to nothing.

Now let's get to this particular bill. Introduced by Congressman Higgins from Louisiana, the Racehorse Health and Safety Act (RHSA) has just one cosponsor. In order for any bill to become law, it needs a lot of support, support that comes in the form of “cosponsors.” HISA had more than 260 cosponsors and was supported by both Republicans and Democrats. RHSA only has one, and both are Republicans. In fact, the member of Congress who has been working to garner support for this bill for months has decided he can no longer support it. Without bipartisan support and many cosponsors, bills don't go anywhere in Congress.

Now to the lack of merits of the legislation. The very same people who spent years and millions of dollars fighting in Congress and in the courts against uniform safety standards and a unified regulator would now have us believe that they are actually for uniform safety standards and a unified regulator. The goal of RHSA is to repeal HISA, return the industry to the state-by-state patchwork regulatory system, and then create a unified regulator and unified safety standards. You read that correctly-this bill suggests rolling back all the work HISA has done, turn the industry back over to the states, and then create its own regulatory body and rules. Instead of trying to work with HISA, within the scope of the law, HISA's detractors are simply wasting everyone's time.

Congressman Higgins and the detractors of HISA know that it would take years to slog through the cumbersome process of passing enabling legislation in nearly three dozen racing states to establish RHSA. Repealing HISA to then enact RHSA with the consent of 32 states would be similar to the time-consuming process of amending the Constitution, which has only happened 27 times in more than 200 years. This bill is a laughable attempt to turn back the clock on track safety and anti-doping rules – which is precisely why there is so little support in Washington for the HISA repeal bill.

As I've said for months, these detractors need to put an end to their arguments. It is crucial that the whole of the Thoroughbred industry comes together for the betterment of our sport. In these challenging times, we must rally around HISA to ensure the highest standards of integrity and safety are upheld. The Racehorse Health and Safety Act would set the industry back when we should be setting aside our differences and working collaboratively towards a brighter, safer future for Thoroughbred racing under the guidance of HISA which is already the law of the land. Together, we can safeguard the integrity and longevity of this beloved sport.

Tom Rooney is the President and CEO of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association. He formerly served in the U.S. House of Representatives for five terms, representing the state of Florida.

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Purchased for $70,000 out of this year's OBS March Sale with the objective of sending him over to Royal Ascot–where his sire was a strong fifth to Blue Point (Ire) (Shamardal) in the 2018 G1 King's Stand S.–Mattingly debuted in the May 13 Royal Palm Juvenile S., finishing runner-up to No Nay Mets (Ire) (No Nay Never), who received the automatic berth. Unplaced in the G2 Norfolk S., No Nay Mets has since added a pair of open-lengths stakes scores and is a leading U.S. hope for the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint. An easy maiden winner over this surface June 24, Mattingly was last seen finishing a softened-up second in the July 16 Victoria S. on the Woodbine Tapeta and landed here for a build-up into the fall.

Off quickly from gate four, the Florida-bred was soon overhauled at the fence by Esperon (Chitu), who zipped his opening quarter mile in :21.14 while opening a bit of daylight on the turn. Taking aim on the front-runner nearing the stretch, Mattingly needed to be straightened out by Samy Camacho approaching the eighth pole, but went to Esperon with about a sixteenth of a mile to race and edged clear. Okiro (Yoshida {Jpn}) rallied outside the eventual winner into the lane, but was outfinished for the victory.

“I learned a lot in that Woodbine race,” said winning trainer Joe Orseno. “When it scratched down to four horses, we thought, 'Just go. He's fast.' He got stuck in a speed duel to set it up for the horse coming off of it. I said, 'That's not going to happen again. I said, 'We've got to let [Esperon] and [Prevent {Neolithic}] go.' That was the plan we took, and it worked.”

Regarding future plans for the horse, Ironhorse Racing Managing Partner Harlan Malter said: “I honestly don't think he's truly a five-furlong horse, so we might just let them go knock heads at Santa Anita [in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint] and try a race like the [Nov. 4 $120,000] Atlantic Beach S. [at Aqueduct] to give him a little more distance and to see what he can do back on the turf. But nothing is off the table right now.”

Ironhorse also campaigns the Orseno-trained 3-year-old Bucchero filly Beauty of the Sea, winner of the Blue Sparkler S. in July, who also descends from a Gone West-line dam. Click for the Equibase.com chart or VIDEO, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

HOLLYWOOD BEACH S., $90,000, Gulfstream, 9-30, 2yo, 5f (AWT), :56.67, ft.
1–MATTINGLY, 120, c, 2, by Bucchero
1st Dam: Battingstar, by Grand Slam
2nd Dam: Starship Sensation, by Go for Gin
3rd Dam: Tremor, by Tromos (GB)
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN. ($70,000 2yo '23 OBSMAR). O-Ironhorse Racing Stable LLC & Harlow Stables LLC; B-Lance Colwell (FL); T-Joseph F Orseno; J-Samy Camacho. $64,000. Lifetime Record: 4-2-2-0, $147,028. *Third stakes winner for sophomore sire (by Kantharos).
2–Okiro, 120, c, 2, Yoshida (Jpn)–She Hung the Moon, by Malibu Moon. 1ST BLACK-TYPE. ($8,200 Ylg '22 FTKOCT; $25,000 2yo '23 OBSMAR). O-Yutaka Enterprises Corp.; B-Burleson Farm & McKenzie Bloodstock (KY); T-Jose Garoffalo. $13,000.
3–Esperon, 120, c, 2, Chitu–Satan's Mistress, by Songandaprayer. 1ST BLACK-TYPE. ($70,000 RNA 2yo '23 OBSMAR; $165,000 2yo '23 OBSOPN). O-Champion Equine LLC; B-Michael Frank (FL); T-J David Braddy. $7,800.
Margins: 1 3/4, 1, 1. Odds: 1.50, 2.80, 5.20.
Also Ran: Prevent, El Principito. Scratched: Hermoso Hombre, Roar Ready.

#FloridaBred Mattingly, a son of #FloridaSire ⁦@Buccherostud⁩ wins the $65,000 Hollywood Beach ⁦@GulfstreamPark⁩ while also earning a $25,000 Florida-bred win bonus. Ridden by ⁦@SamyCamacho1⁩ pic.twitter.com/vwxds4Tv3m

— FTBOA (@florida_horse) September 30, 2023

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Under the new statute–the bulk of which goes into effect on July 1–business owners with 25 or more employees must use E-Verify to confirm the immigration status of new hires, and be subjected to enforceable penalties for employing undocumented workers, as well as stricter penalties for sending undocumented workers across state lines to work in Florida, among other provisions.

When enforced, the new stringent laws are highly likely to impact everyone in the industry from trainers, farm managers, and the workers themselves. The TDN reached out to several stakeholders either based in Florida or who regularly race there. Some were unaware of the new law, while others downplayed its impacts.

According to Julio Rubio, backstretch services coordinator and Hispanic liaison for the Kentucky Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, an unusual amount of backstretch workers have recently come to Kentucky from Florida.

Rubio has also fielded calls from trainers in Florida who have already lost employees. “Some of them left for South Carolina. Illinois. They're just getting out of there,” Rubio said.

Immigration experts warn that the bill contains key provisions that employers should be aware of if they're planning to do business in Florida.

According to Will Velie, an immigration attorney with many clients in the racing industry, what is startling about the bill is that it co-opts state governmental agencies into enforcing federal immigration laws.

“The state is creating its own role in this which is unprecedented,” Velie said. “This is by far the biggest incursion of state law into the federal immigration domain.”

For trainers shipping horses into Florida to race from out of state, a notable provision under Senate Bill 1718 is the criminalization of “knowingly or willingly” sending into Florida an undocumented individual across state lines–what could amount to a state felony.

According to Albany-based immigration attorney, Leonard D'Arrigo, of the law firm Harris Beach, the language of the bill is frustratingly vague. For example, the bill states that the employer would only be at risk of prosecution if they know, or “reasonably” should have known, that the employee is undocumented. Nevertheless, he recommends that employers take nothing for granted.

“You have to be thinking about, 'who are we driving into the state if they get pulled over by the police and asked for documentation to prove legal status?'” said D'Arrigo. “If they're unable to prove legal status, there's liability–the employer could ultimately be responsible.”

Another key change is that employers with 25 or more employees must now use the electronic employment verification system, E-Verify, to check the immigration status for all new employees. If the system red-flags the individual as undocumented, then the business employs that person at its own risk.

Importantly, an employer must retain a copy of the documents used by an employee to prove their immigrations status, along with the official verification generated by E-Verify, for at least three years.

This requirement for employers is important. The bill authorizes the state to request any copies of documents used for employment verification purposes from business owners. And come July 1 next year, state law enforcement will be able to perform audits of businesses it believes isn't following E-Verify requirements.

According to D'Arrigo, the added layer of paperwork from E-Verify will likely hamper hiring practices for trainers and farm owners in Florida. This is a state where 25% of the workforce are immigrants, and where about 65% of agricultural and equine-related jobs are filled by immigrant workers.

Furthermore, there are estimated to be over 710,000 undocumented individuals in the Florida workforce. A 2021 report found that some 42% of Florida's farm workers are undocumented.

“They've been getting by for years without this additional scrutiny,” said D'Arrigo, of the current system whereby immigrant workers present “I-9 documentation” to illustrate proof of work status–what often proves a “good faith” arrangement.

“Now, employers are going to know immediately whether those documents are fake or whether they're real,” D'Arrigo said, who emphasized how the new E-Verify requirements only apply to new hires.

The possible sanctions aren't exactly chump change.

For employers who fail to use E-Verify as required three times in any 24-month period, for example, the state can impose fines of $1,000 a day “until the employer provides sufficient proof to the department that the noncompliance is cured.”

Furthermore, the new law also creates incrementally more serious violation sanctions to business owners pinned to the number of undocumented workers employed there and frequency of violations, said D'Arrigo. In a worst-case scenario, the employer could lose their state business license.

At the same time, a worker found to use false identification to gain employment faces a possible $5,000 fine and a five-year prison sentence.

While the new E-Verify requirements apply only to companies with 25 or more employees, D'Arrigo cautions for smaller businesses and their workers to be mindful in other ways.

Trainers and farm owners near the 25-employee cut off need to be vigilant if they exceed that threshold at any time, as this will dramatically affect their hiring practices.

Another important wrinkle in the new immigration landscape in Florida concerns the ability to legally take to the road. According to D'Arrigo, the state Department of Motor Vehicles is expected to maintain a list of drivers' licenses that other states issue to undocumented individuals. Why is this important?

The new law bars counties and municipalities from issuing identification documents like drivers' licenses to individuals unable to prove their legal immigration status. At the same time, Florida law enforcement officers will be ordered to issue citations to anyone using one of the out-of-state licenses listed by the DMV who is unable to prove legal immigration status, said D'Arrigo.

“It's only going to come up if somebody gets pulled over in the normal course of a traffic violation. At that point, the law enforcement officer is directed, if it's one of those out-of-state licenses, to ensure that the person is legally in the U.S.,” said D'Arrigo. “If not, they're to issue them a citation.”

Then comes the issue of workplace injuries. “If somebody gets injured at the track and they're undocumented, they can usually get emergency aid,” said D'Arrigo.

As of July 1, Florida hospitals accepting Medicaid are required to collect patient immigration information on administration or registration forms. These same hospitals are also required to provide a caveat on forms stating that the response will not affect patient care or result in a referral to the immigration authorities. But that's still not enough to allay workers' fears, warned D'Arrigo.

“Although the law says that they cannot share that information, it's still possible it will be shared nonetheless, and potentially transmitted to immigration authorities,” said D'Arrigo. “So, [undocumented] workers are now going to be hesitant to get the medical care that they need because they're going to be fearful from being on the record.”

For Velie, the most chilling provision in the law is that it opens the door for individuals to report to the authorities a “good faith” belief that certain employees are unauthorized. Such a report would require the Florida Department of Economic Development to investigate the complaint–a new dynamic that is likely to generate a “climate of fear” among businesses and immigrant workers, said Velie.

“If I'm [someone looking to make trouble], all I have to do is say with a good faith belief that there's somebody employed without authorization [on the backstretch], and the Florida Department of Economic Development has to investigate,” said Velie. “If somebody's just bent on causing problems, they've got a good way to do that.”

When asked about the immigration climate in Florida, Tom Rooney, National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) president and CEO, pointed to the H-2B guest worker program as a labor safety net.

Because of the sheer demand for H2-B visas and the limited supply, however, it's unlikely to prove an adequate fix to Florida's immigrant labor gaps.

“The National Thoroughbred Racing Association has long advocated on the Federal level for solutions for the industry, like a permanent returning worker exemption, and will continue to do so,” wrote Rooney in an email, pointing to long-identified problems with the H-2B system.

“For those trainers with over 25 employees for which this law applies we will continue to work diligently at the federal level with our partners in the H-2B Coalition to push for more workers to help fill the need,” Rooney added.

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“On Jan. 21, Gulfstream Park identified a horse who was displaying signs of EHV,” the track said in a statement. “That horse was immediately transferred to Rood & Riddle Veterinary Hospital in Wellington and the affected barn, barn 21 was placed in immediate quarantine. Testing was expedited through the Frederick Diagnostic Laboratory in Maryland which confirmed a positive EHV. Barn 21 remains in strict lockdown as per GSP protocols. One of the horses in quarantine was set to run in the Pegasus World Cup but was withdrawn prior to the post-position draw. We are awaiting further directive from the state veterinarian and will provide an update as soon as one is available.”

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The seven candidates are:

OWNERS

• Gerardo Amado
• Tom Cannell
• David Geofroy
• Jeffrey Siskin

TRAINERS

• Patrick Biancone
• Jorge Delgado
• David Fawkes

The Florida THA is supervised and managed by a Board between 11 to 15 Directors. Six seats are reserved for Owner/Directors, and six seats are reserved for Trainer/Directors. Three Directors may be either an owner or a trainer. An individual licensed as an owner may only run for a seat on the Board as an owner; an individual licensed as a trainer or as an owner and trainer may only run for a seat on the Board as a trainer.

The Board of Directors is divided into three groups of five Directors, known as Groups 1, 2, and 3. Elections are held annually, and the terms of all Directors are three years.

Voting for the 2023 FTHA Election will begin in February. Each member of the FTHA who is currently licensed as an owner and/or trainer and is in good standing is entitled to cast one vote in the general election.

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