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Organization Of Racing Investigators Schedules March 27-30 Conference At Aqueduct

The Organization of Racing Investigators will be holding their 2022 conference at Aqueduct racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y., on March 27-30, ORI chair Jean Claude Jaramillo has announced.

The 2021 ORI conference was cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Rep. Paul Tonko (D-NY), co-sponsor of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act, has accepted an invitation to be keynote speaker at the conference. The legislation, passed into law in December 2020, created the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority that is scheduled to begin national oversight of medication rules and enforcement by July 1, 2022.

Other items and speakers on the preliminary agenda for the ORI conference:

William Behe, assistant U.S. attorney, for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, will speak about the investigation into corruption at Penn National.
Five topics reflecting the current “points of emphasis” from the Racing Officials Accreditation Program (ROAP) to ensure ORI members who have ROAP accreditation receive their required continuing education hours.

All agenda items are subject to change.

Members of the Organization of Racing Investigators, established in 1991, are responsible for investigations associated with racing and are employed by government, police, and regulatory entities as well as private security firms and racetracks.

ORI members have successfully investigated race fixing, horse doping, animal abuse, drug abuse, money laundering, cyber crime, fraud, conspiracy, and a host of other infractions of the laws and rules that govern horse racing and pari-mutuel activity.

ORI members assist with drug testing programs, conduct background investigations and cooperate with law enforcement agencies at all levels of government.

Qualified professionals interested in joining or renewing ORI membership and registering for the conference should click here.

Beginning Jan. 10, conference attendees may begin making reservations with the ORI-designated accommodation site, the Hilton New York JFK Airport hotel, for the nightly rate of $159 plus tax. The Hilton is an approximately ten-minute drive from Aqueduct Racetrack. Call the hotel directly at 718-659-0200 or 800-445-8667.

A reminder to those planning to attend the conference: To comply with New York City regulations, all individuals seeking to enter Aqueduct racetrack must show proof of COVID-19 vaccination to gain admittance.

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Legislation Introduced to Ease Tax Burden

U.S. Congressman Andy Barr, a Kentucky Republican who represents Lexington, has reintroduced the Equine Tax Fairness Act, which, if passed would make changes to the tax laws favorable to horse owners and breeders, it was announced by his office Wednesday.

The bill calls for new regulations that would make the three-year depreciation schedule permanent for racehorses, no matter their age when put into service. Currently, Congress must reauthorize this provision in the tax law on an annual basis.

The legislation would also reduce the holding period for equine assets to be considered long term capital gains, putting them on a level playing field with other similar assets.

“Permanently delivering tax incentives for owners and breeders will strengthen investment in our signature equine industry,” Congressman Barr, who serves as Co-Chair of the Congressional Horse Caucus, said in a statement. “I want to continue the momentum started with the enactment of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act to push another key industry initiative across the finish line that will help solidify the sport for decades to come.”

Barr's bill has been endorsed by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association, the Jockey Club, the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, Keeneland, and the American Horse Council.

“The three-year depreciation of racehorses (similar to other investment assets) is critically important to encourage robust investment in Thoroughbred horses and to maintain the vibrant economy and trade we have seen throughout this Thoroughbred sales cycle and consistently over the past 85 years at Keeneland,” Shannon Arvin, President and CEO of Keeneland said in a statement. “We appreciate Congressman Barr's consistent support of this legislation and the entire Thoroughbred industry.”

“The Jockey Club wholeheartedly supports the Equine Tax Fairness Act, introduced by Congressman Andy Barr,” Jockey Club President & CEO Jim Gagliano said in a statement. “This bill will put horse ownership on par with other investment assets. The bill addresses two key deficiencies of the tax code. First, the bill will decrease the depreciation schedule eligible to racehorses from seven years to three, permanently rescheduling racehorses that are put into service before the age of two into the three-year depreciation asset class. The three-year depreciation schedule accurately reflects the typical career of a racehorse since nearly three-quarters of foals that race have a career of four years or less. This change has been enacted by Congress on a temporary, year-to-year basis since 2008, and needs to be permanent law.

“Second, the Equine Tax Fairness Act will reduce the holding period required for equine assets to be considered long-term capital assets from 24 months to 12 months, putting them in line with other investments, such as homes, stocks and bonds.”

Along with Congressman Paul Tonko, Barr was the original sponsor in the House of Representatives of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act.

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Rep. Paul Tonko Named 2020 Humane Horseman Of The Year

The Humane Society of the United States today honored Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., as its 2020 Humane Horseman of the Year. This annual award is given to an individual who demonstrates an outstanding commitment to protecting American equines. Rep. Tonko is specifically being recognized for his dedication to the passage of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act in December 2020, which marked a significant step in protecting hundreds of thousands of racehorses now and for the foreseeable future, and for his ongoing leadership and support on several other equine welfare initiatives.

Rep. Tonko is a longtime member of the Congressional Animal Protection Caucus and has consistently championed horse protection legislation including the Save America's Forgotten Equines Act to prevent the slaughter of American horses and the Prevent All Soring Tactics Act to protect certain gaited horse breeds from the abusive training practice known as soring.

“During his time in Congress, Representative Tonko has been a tireless champion for equine protection, always going above and beyond,” stated Keith Dane, senior director of equine protection at the Humane Society of the United States. “We are so appreciative of his remarkable leadership to stop terrible cruelties to equines including the slaughter of horses for human consumption, soring of Tennessee walking horses and related breeds to win prizes, and doping of racehorses, which has caused so many tragic fatalities.”

“I am humbled to be named Humane Horseman of the Year by the Humane Society of the United States,” stated Rep. Tonko. “My work—really our work—to elevate the sport of horseracing with strong, enforceable standards of integrity and safety would not have been possible without all of the champions working to lift up the health of our equine athletes. I look forward to a long successful partnership as we continue paving a bright future for this noble sport.”

In the House of Representatives Rep. Tonko was the lead sponsor of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act, which was signed into law in December of 2020. This law will address widespread doping—a key contributing factor to frequent fatalities on American racetracks, as horses including injured ones are drugged up with painkillers and performance-enhancing substances and pushed beyond their limits. This animal protection measure will ban race-day medication, substantially increase out-of-competition testing and establish uniform national rules and oversight for the use of drugs in racehorses, replacing the hodgepodge of different rules in 38 U.S. racing jurisdictions. It creates a new independent nonprofit authority that will contract with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency as its anti-doping and medication control enforcement agency.

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Congressmen File Amicus Brief In Support of HISA

The lead congressional sponsors of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA), Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and Representatives Andy Barr (R-KY) and Paul Tonko (D-NY), have filed a 14-page amicus ('friend of the court') brief in response to a lawsuit filed by the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association and some of its affiliates, challenging its constitutionality.

The brief lays out the reasons why HISA is necessary to protect and preserve the future of horse racing, deliberations in Congress over the course of several years that included input from all sectors of the horse racing industry–which resulted in broad, bipartisan support for the bill–and the reasons why HISA is, in fact, constitutional. HISA was signed into law by President Trump in December 2020.

“The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) commends Sen. McConnell, Rep. Barr and Rep. Tonko for their forceful defense of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020,” said NTRA President and Chief Executive Officer Alex Waldrop. “The need for a national body to enforce stringent integrity and safety standards for Thoroughbred racing has never been greater. Organizations and individuals representing virtually every segment of our industry are committed to working cooperatively with the HISA Authority and its standing advisory committees to assist the Authority in carrying out its federal mandate to propose to the Federal Trade Commission for that agency's adoption an innovative, affordable federal regulatory system that prioritizes first and foremost the safety of horse and rider and the integrity of our sport.”

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