Florida Governor Ron DeSantis

Damon Thayer has retired from his job as the Senate Majority Floor Leader in the state of Kentucky, where he was one of horse racing's staunchest and most important allies. Thayer may no longer be walking the halls of the Capitol in Frankfort, but he is still working hard to help the sport he loves. He is now a senior advisor with Thoroughbred Racing Initiative (TRI), a group devoted to stopping decoupling efforts at Gulfstream Park and to see to it that racing in South Florida remains a vital part...

After this past spring's failed attempt to get a controversial bill passed in the Florida legislature that would have stripped a 40-days-minimum live racing requirement from its casino licensure, the owners of Gulfstream Park have filed a lawsuit against the Florida Gaming Control Commission (FGCC), alleging that the 2021 statute that allowed all classes of pari-mutuel licensees except Thoroughbreds to "decouple" from live racing as a condition of operating slot machines is an "unconstitutional special law and violates the equal protection clause of the Florida Constitution." Daniel Wallach, a Florida-based...

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law Monday a budget package that includes a continuation to, and in certain ways a redistribution of, the incentives and promotions that lawmakers have funnelled towards the state racing and breeding industries in recent years. The budget includes the following details: $15 million to Gulfstream Park and $5 million to Tampa Bay Downs for purses "and for the maintenance and operation" of these facilities. This mirrors the amounts listed for such purposes in last year's budget. $6 million to Gulfstream Park and $1.5 million...

The Florida Legislature has concluded policy discussions for the 2025 Regular Legislative Session, effectively killing the proposed decoupling provisions of Senate Bill 408, House Bill 105, and House Bill 1467, all of which the Florida Senate declined to approve for final passage, the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association said in a press release late on Friday. However, Florida law requires the legislature to pass a balanced state budget each year. To meet this constitutional requirement, the legislature has extended the session through June 6, but has limited the focus...

The Florida House of Representatives on Friday passed controversial Thoroughbred decoupling legislation by a 70-34 vote at 6:10 p.m. HB 167 is a wide-ranging gaming bill, but the only section of it that came up for debate during the Apr. 25 legislative session was the decoupling aspect. As passed by the House, the bill would remove a statutory requirement that Gulfstream Park and Tampa Bay Downs run a minimum number of live Thoroughbred races in order to operate the respective casino and card room at each venue. The language of...