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Illinois Horsemen Urge Antitrust Investigation Over Alleged Arlington Park-Rivers Casino Link

The following statement was issued by the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association:

The Illinois attorney general's office has been urged to investigate whether Churchill Downs Inc. committed state or federal antitrust violations when it took a series of steps to preclude casino gaming and diminish pari-mutuel wagering at a site in close proximity to its Rivers Casino in Des Plaines, Ill.

Churchill spent two decades pursuing the authority to operate a casino at the Arlington Park racetrack in Arlington Heights, but, after purchasing the majority stake in Rivers, maneuvered to end gaming at the nearby track. Churchill abruptly abandoned its Arlington casino plan and, in moving to sell the property, insisted the site's future use would be “higher and better” than horse racing – effectively ending the continuation of meaningful pari-mutuel wagering activity. All the while, Churchill executives were careful in their public comments to avoid stipulating any motive on their part to suppress competition facing Rivers, their highly successful casino.

Also established is that Churchill contradicted the intent of a 2019 Illinois law that authorized a casino license for Arlington – the privilege that Churchill had sought before purchasing its stake in Rivers. Churchill's decision to forgo the option to open a casino at Arlington surprised Illinois elected officials who backed the 2019 law; the Arlington casino was intended by state officials to generate new tax revenue for the state and local governments, boost pari-mutuel wagering, enhance the racing program at the track, and create scores of new racing-related jobs.

But unclear is whether Churchill's steps rose to violations of state or federal antitrust laws. In a letter to the Illinois attorney general's office, Mike Campbell, president of the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, described a pattern of deceit by Churchill executives and argued that the publicly available evidence supports the launch of an antitrust investigation.

“Churchill executives evidently engaged in a campaign to block current and future gaming scenarios at Arlington while telegraphing messages to deflect public attention from its actual intent: shielding Rivers from a major gaming competitor in close proximity,” Campbell wrote in the letter, which also was forwarded to the U.S. Justice Department. A PDF of the letter is available here.

Arlington is just a 12-mile drive from Rivers; a reinvigorated horse racing program at Arlington, particularly as part of a casino entertainment complex, would become the closest major gaming competitor to Rivers. In February, Arlington Heights Mayor Thomas Hayes told ABC7/WLS-TV in Chicago what others had privately concluded. “I think it's clear why they did not choose to open a casino at the racetrack property – because it would directly compete with their majority interest in the Rivers Casino,” he said of Churchill.

Churchill plans to accept bids for the purchase of Arlington in mid-June. Amid widespread concern that Churchill might be angling to preclude a future owner of Arlington from engaging in forms of gaming, the Arlington Heights village board in early May approved an ordinance intended to prohibit Churchill from placing certain restrictions – specifically, those that would prevent future gaming – on the property.

Campbell noted in the letter to the Illinois attorney general's office that the ITHA brought to the attention of Illinois racing regulators a reported offer in 2019 by a group of prospective owners to purchase Arlington from Churchill with the intent of continuing racing, and developing a casino, at that site. Churchill reportedly refused but never publicly noted any such offer.

“It's unfortunate that Churchill Downs, once a stalwart of thoroughbred racing, appears now to care solely about corporate profit. But Illinois isn't Churchill's trough – our state doesn't exist to feed Churchill's greed,” Campbell said. “A gaming license such as the one granted to Rivers Casino is a privilege. It means Churchill has a responsibility to follow the law, particularly when the law is aimed at serving the best interests of Illinois taxpayers.”

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Pennsylvania: New Clenbuterol Restrictions And Illegal Drugs Found In Barn Searches

At its virtual meeting May 25, the Pennsylvania Horse Racing Commission unanimously approved new restrictions on clenbuterol use. While previously the drug carried a 2 picogram per milliliter threshold, any detectable level of the medication will be considered a violation if the administration does not meet certain requirements. Administrations must come as the result of a prescription made for a specific horse for a specific diagnosis and the prescribing veterinarian must report the horse's identity and diagnosis to the commission. The prescribing veterinarian may be asked for a copy of the prescription also. Trainers must also report the administration to the commission.

Treatment periods for clenbuterol may run no more than 30 days, and horses will go on the veterinarian's list after treatment. They may be required to pass a drug test for clenbuterol before being allowed to enter a race. The idea of the new regulations, according to executive director Tom Chuckas, is not to ban the substance's use in all racing horses but to prevent it being in horses' system at race time.

The new regulations will apply to Thoroughbreds only.

Representatives of both the Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and Pennsylvania HBPA expressed support for the new measures, as did the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association.

Samuel Beegle, president of the Pennsylvania Harness Horsemen's Association, sounded less enthusiastic.

“I think you're digging a hole for yourself,” was Beegle's only comment to the commission prior to the vote.

Clenbuterol, commonly known by its trade name of Ventipulmin syrup, is an effective treatment for common respiratory ailments in the horse but can also have anabolic steroid-like effects.

Also at Tuesday's meeting, Chuckas revealed that barn searches had resumed at Parx after being significantly reduced during COVID-19, and produced some disturbing results during a series of raids last weekend.

“We did six total barn searches, six tack room searches,” he said. “In addition to that, we looked at five grooms' quarters and five external tack rooms. We did 66 out-of-competition tests. In our enforcement action, I can say without getting into too much detail, a significant amount of contraband was discovered dealing with medications, either unlabeled, compounded, or expired.

“I regret to say that there were contraband items that have no business on the backside, like needles and syringes and some other things that we discovered. Be advised, many of these carry an active investigation … so I'm somewhat confined in what I can share. The fact of the matter is Parx is the first step in this process … moving forward I think it's fair to say the other tracks will receive the same enforcement action.”

There were 25 scratches from Tuesday's card at Parx, including nine stewards' scratches, though it remains clear if those are connected to the results of the raids, which Thoroughbred Daily News reports took place over the weekend. Trainer Richard Vega saw all three of his entries scratched by stewards. Vega trains horses for Dun Roamin Farm, which is the nom de course for Pennsylvania Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association president Sal DeBunda. DeBunda was the only commissioner not appearing on the meeting Tuesday.

According to laws passed in 2015, Thoroughbred horsemen and breeders' representatives on the commission hold veto power on the hiring of a director, adoption of regulations including medication rules, and approval or denial of licenses to operate race meetings.

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Legislative Committee Formed To Assess Tax Structure Of Historical Horse Racing

Sen. Damon Thayer and Rep. Adam Koenig have been appointed co-chairs of the Pari-Mutuel Wagering Taxation Task Force, which will study the taxes and rates related to horse racing, the impact that changing the rates would have, and the funds relating to the horse industry which receive historical horse racing tax receipts, eventually determining if any changes to those tax rates should be made.

Thayer is the Senate majority leader and a former racing executive, while Koenig sponsored the bill in the House clarifying the legal status of HHR machines.

Other members of the committee include: Julie Raque Adams, Christian McDaniel, Stephen West, Jonathan Dixon, Al Gentry, Matthew Koch, and Jason Petrie.

The Kentucky Equine Education Project, Kentucky's equine economic advocate, released the following statement on the appointment of the Pari-Mutuel Wagering Taxation Task Force:

“The Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP) commends the appointment of the Pari-Mutuel Wagering Taxation Task Force, the first step in ensuring an equitable tax rate for historical horse racing (HHR) that will result in increased revenue for the state and promote continued growth for Kentucky's nation-leading horse industry.

“During the legislative session when the preservation of HHR was discussed, Kentucky's horse industry pledged to work with the legislature to assess the tax structure of HHR, how those funds are allocated, what the impact would be on the industry and Kentucky's economy if the tax rates are changed, and determine if any changes should be made to the existing structure.

“KEEP stands ready to work with the Task Force and be part of the conversation on HHR to ensure that entire horse industry – all breeds and disciplines – continues to see benefit from HHR through incentive funds and other state programs. Additionally, it is paramount that changes to the tax structure of HHR are not detrimental to the horse industry's 60,000 direct and indirect jobs and its $6.5 billion impact on Kentucky's economy. KEEP looks forward to working closely with the Task Force to accomplish these goals.

“KEEP extends its gratitude to Representative Matt Koch and Representative Ruth Ann Palumbo for their legislative efforts to establish this Task Force.”

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‘The Rule Is Not Changing’: Monmouth Threatens To Ban Jockeys Who Refuse Mounts On Opening Day

This Friday marks opening day at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, NJ, as well as the first time the new state-mandated whip rules will be in effect. These are the strictest whip rules in the United States, allowing jockeys to only use the crop for reasons of safety.

According to bloodhorse.com, Monmouth has threatened that jockeys who refuse mounts on Friday will not be allowed to ride at the track for the remainder of the 2021 meet.

“We are having a problem with guys who have been on the backstretch all monthlong working horses and have calls and are now they are saying they won't ride Friday but they will ride Saturday,” John Heims, director of racing and racing secretary at Monmouth, told bloodhorse.com. “We are not going to let people stick it to us and cost us money by canceling racing. If you feel unsafe Friday, how are you safe Saturday? If it's unsafe and you don't want to ride, I get it. No one is asking you to do something you are uncomfortable doing. The rule is not changing, so if you will not ride Friday since you believe it's unsafe, why would you ride any other day?”

Entries for Friday's card close Tuesday. Heim said he has 12 jockeys lined up to ride Friday, and that a trio of jockeys serving suspensions through Friday (Paco Lopez, Nik Juarez, and Ferrin Peterson) will not be affected by the ban.