FTBOA’s Lonny Powell on GPTARP: “Thoroughbred people with major investments in the industry don’t like being treated like potted plants”

GPTARP Thoroughbred race deemed illegal

FTBOA’s Lonny Powell: “Thoroughbred people with major investments in the industry don’t like being treated like potted plants”

www.Ocala.com

By Carlos E. Medina
Correspondent

Published: Monday, July 15, 2013 at 11:53 a.m.

A 150-yard thoroughbred race run July 1 at Gulfstream Park was held illegally, according to a complaint filed by the Florida Division of Pari-mutuel Wagering.

The race came as a surprise to most in South Florida racing circles, as well as to the Ocala-based board members of the organization that held the race. The race featured three horses that sprinted 150 yards on the part of the Gulfstream track that lies in Miami-Dade County.

The race was run under the thoroughbred license of the Gulfstream Park Thoroughbred Aftercare Retirement Program, a non-profit subsidiary of The Stronach Group, which also owns Gulfstream Park. Frank Stronach, a major Marion County landowner, is chairman of the group.

The administrative complaint by the state alleges the retirement program was required to hold at least two races and did not inform the state of the race at least 10 days prior to its running, as required by law. The complaint seeks to fine the program $1,000 or suspend or revoke its racing permit.

Lonny Powell, executive vice president and CEO of the Ocala-based Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association, said the race was planned without the inclusion of the four association members on the Gulfstream Park Thoroughbred Aftercare Retirement Program board.

“We started insisting about a year ago that GPTARP needed to start treating it like a proper business, with open discussions among board members. Our representatives on the board were never included in a single meeting until we demanded one a couple of months ago. There was a definite understanding that there would be no more surprises, so you can understand the shock we got when a few weeks later this thing happens,” Powell said.

Association members on the program board are J. Michael O’Farrell Jr., Fred Brei, Brent Fernung and Phil Matthews.

“By statute, the FTBOA has four seats on the board. Those members are thoroughbred people with major investments in the industry and they don’t like being treated like potted plants,” Powell said. “They are not figureheads, they are not phantom board members. That has been communicated clearly.”

No one from Gulfstream or the Gulfstream Park Thoroughbred Aftercare Retirement Program could be reached for comment.

The endgame for the race was an attempt to add more casino-style slot machines to the facility using the retirement program license. The move by the organization was criticized for its making a mockery of racing well before the state filed its complaint.

Kent Stirling, executive director of the Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, which represents owners and trainers who race at both Calder Race Course and Gulfstream Park in South Florida, lamented what some were doing to the sport in order to gain other types of gambling, including card rooms and casino-style slot machines.

Vagaries in the laws led to the state allowing pari-mutuel barrel racing at Gretna Racing in 2011. Earlier this year, an administrative law judge ruled the state overstepped its authority by allowing what amounted to a new form of racing. In gaining the initial license, representatives for Gretna, including Gretna stakeholder Marc Dunbar, argued to the state that the law did not explicitly define racing. Dunbar was also part of the Gulfstream Park Thoroughbred Aftercare Retirement Program race. Dunbar, a longtime Tallahassee lobbyist for Gulfstream, could not be reached for comment.

“They have been getting some very poor advice on how to conduct this thing. I know Mr. Stronach well. I used to work for him. I know this is not the way he would truly want to be conducting business,” Powell said. “It’s supposed to be about the racing of thoroughbreds, not putting on some cheap facade to circumvent the investment which goes into racing to gain other forms of gaming.”

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Prominent Anti-Gambling Advocate “No Casinos” Notes Florida Regulators’ “Nose-Thumbing” at Stern Court Ruling on Phony Horse Racing

Prominent Anti-Gambling Advocate “No Casinos” Notes Florida Regulators’ “Nose-Thumbing” at Stern Court Ruling on Phony Horse Racing

• To see United Florida Horsemen’s message to the Governor this week, click here.

In a strongly-worded news release issued this week, June 24, 2013, “No Casinos,” a prominent anti-gambling advocacy group, noted that the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering has essentially “thumbed its nose” at the judge who recently ruled that pari-mutuel wagering on phony horse racing cannot be sanctioned or conducted under current law.

To view the No Casinos news release, click here.

Just days after the court sternly ruled that “pari-mutuel barrel racing” and similarly contrived events run afoul of Florida law, the Division issued yet another such license to Gretna Racing, LLC, after its representatives—the very same attorneys who intervened in the administrative case attempting to defend the Division’s unlawful actions —had sent threatening letters to Florida regulators objecting to enforcement of the judge’s ruling.  Within hours, Florida’s regulators caved.

“The Division is siding with those who want to cleverly skirt the laws – rather than enforcing the full letter and spirit of those laws,” said No Casinos President John Sowinski. “It is time for Secretary Lawson to step in and cancel these licenses before this leads to another un-checked proliferation of gambling like we saw for too long with Internet Cafés.”

Initially, it seemed as though the State would honor the judge’s scathing 85-page rebuke of Gretna’s activities by allowing only legitimate quarter horse racing.  But now, the State appears committed to giving Gretna yet another free pass.

“What’s worse,” Sowinski continued, “it’s clear that operators at Gretna don’t care if anybody even watches the races.  They just want them to take place in order to try to meet the technical requirements of hosting more lucrative forms of gambling, including simulcast, cardrooms, and they hope one day, slot machines.

Normally, the market introduction of any new gambling product would be enabled with the passage of legislation, followed by subsequent regulatory hearings in which public input would be provided and considered.  With “pari-mutuel barrel racing” and its offspring, such as the bootleg racing Gretna conducted this past weekend with the State’s full blessing, none of that process has occurred.

“Florida’s $2.2 billion dollar horse racing industry creates 104,000 documented annual Florida jobs,” explained representatives from the Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association, which prevailed in the case.  “Governor Scott has committed to getting Floridians back to work by promoting Florida business the cornerstone of his administration.  Now, we need him to hold true to that vision by putting a stop to this outrageous sidestep of Florida law that doing just the opposite by putting our Florida horsemen and breeders out of work.”

 

 

 

Read more about this issue at  www.FloridaHorsemen.com

 

Gretna “Pari-Mutuel Barrel Racing” Awarded Mystery License

Announcing “business as usual,” Gretna Racing LLC (“Gretna”) applied for and has received an amended racing license from the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering yesterday, June 6, 2013, that authorized it to conduct back-to-back weekends of mysterious and unspecified “quadruple-header” events this month on June 22 and 29.

In the wake of a court ruling against Gretna last month concluding that “pari-mutuel barrel racing” was illegal, the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering ordered the North Florida facility not to conduct the contrived event, which was judged to be a definitive sidestep around Florida’s live horse racing requirements in order to enable Gretna to concurrently hold cardrooms and possibly slot machines.

But, in a snub to the court’s sharply worded 85-page ruling, Gretna immediately and publicly announced it would simply “tweak” the format of its spurious activities and continue on with its self-crafted events, which are not even sanctioned as legitimate barrel racing by the National Barrel Racing Association and other longstanding national organizations.

“Especially in light of the court ruling last month and the pending legislative gaming study underway, the public deserves transparency on the exact details of what is now taking place at Gretna’s facility,” said Kent Stirling, Executive Director of the Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (FHBPA), a statutory statewide organization of Florida Thoroughbred owners and trainers that joined with the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners Association (FTBOA) in supporting the FQHRA throughout the recent litigation.

“We have seen no indications of any construction taking place on a regulation Quarter Horse racetrack,” said Dr. Steve Fisch, president of the Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association (FQHRA), which prevailed in last month’s landmark case. The FQHRA is Florida’s statutory arm of the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA), a national organization with 350,000 members worldwide that ensures proper racing regulation and safe, humane treatment of the horses involved.

“According to amended Gretna license, it appears they are holding eight ‘performances’ held over two Saturdays.  Bearing in mind that a Florida defines a ‘performance’ as eight individual ‘races,’ this means four days’ worth of performances are held in the afternoon and evening of one day.  Normally and historically, eight performances take place over eight different days,” explained Dr. Fisch, a nationally recognized equine veterinarian.

“A major concern is if the horses are performing more than once per day, then the health of the horse and, hence, that of the rider are both at risk,” Dr. Fisch added.  “In American Quarter Horse and Thoroughbred racing, horses race no more than once every fourteen days on average.  Six to eight races per year is an average schedule for a racehorse.   Knowing this, the health and welfare of the horse and rider should always be first and foremost to Florida’s pari-mutuel permitholders.  This is why it’s imperative that an independent group knowledgeable in equine health and welfare must represent horses and horsemen alike.  The FHBPA, FQHRA, AQHA and FTBOA are all established, respected groups that have proven they hold horses’ health as a major criteria on all fronts.”

“We have seen no indications of any construction taking place on a regulation Quarter Horse racetrack at Gretna’s facility,” said Dr. Steve Fisch, FQHRA president

While Gretna’s cardrooms continued to operate, wagering on Gretna’s “pari-mutuel barrel racing” has been recorded as low as $24 per day and contests there have often been canceled due to lack of interest. Just several months after the initial license was awarded with which “pari-mutuel barrel racing” was conducted, Gadsden County, in which the City of Gretna is located, approved the holding of a referendum to install slot machines at the Gretna Racing facility.

Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation Will Not Appeal May 6, 2013 “Pari-Mutuel Barrel Racing” Ruling

Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association

The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation will not appeal a month-old ruling in a long-running lawsuit over “pari-mutuel barrel racing” at Gretna Racing, LLC, (“Gretna”) the United Florida Horsemen learned on June 6, 2013.

 

Since that May 6 ruling, the State of Florida has advised Gretna and Hamilton Downs Jai Alai and Poker, another pari-mutuel permitholder holding similar activities, that both must conduct legitimate horse racing in order to maintain their cardrooms—and possibly slot machines—according to Florida law.

  

Normally, the market introduction of any new gambling product would be enabled with the passage of legislation, followed by subsequent regulatory hearings in which public input would be provided and considered.  With “pari-mutuel barrel racing,” none of that process had occurred, thus spawning the administrative litigation.

 

“We salute Governor Scott and our pari-mutuel regulators for upholding the integrity of the law toward much-needed clarity in Florida’s pari-mutuel statutes,” said Dr. Steve Fisch, President of the Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association (FQHRA), which prevailed in the case.  “We have legions of prominent national horsemen and breeders who have been waiting for a positive outcome so they can set up shop in Florida.  After our members drained their hard-earned savings to fight this seemingly endless battle over what was essentially a get-rich-quick scheme, we are hopeful that today’s decision by regulators not to appeal assures Florida’s horsemen that the State really does want to keep and grow its long-held title as a top international horse racing destination.”

 

Meanwhile, co-owners of Gretna—both prominent pari-mutuel lobbyist-lawyers who concurrently litigated the case as “intervenors” on behalf of the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering—filed a notice of appeal earlier this week under a self-owned association name, adding to the turmoil of several still-pending lawsuits directly related to the May 6 “pari-mutuel barrel racing” ruling.  

 

“Each of these yet-to-be-adjudicated spurious lawsuits has been cleverly designed to decimate Florida’s horse racing industry by supporting the premise of phony events that have clearly now been ruled as illegal,” said Kent Stirling, Executive Director of the Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (FHBPA), a statutory statewide organization of Florida Thoroughbred owners and trainers that joined with the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners Association (FTBOA) in supporting the FQHRA.

 

“We are confident that Gretna’s co-owners have no standing to appeal the May 6 ruling,” Stirling added.

 

But, as the “pari-mutuel barrel racing” case dragged on for nearly two years, yet-existing “Gretna hybrids” and offshoot regulatory schemes devised to capitalize on the “Gretna model” have emerged and remain throughout Florida at various pari-mutuels, and even at leased facilities—all with the intention of sidestepping legitimate, live horse racing.

 

“Horse racing creates over 104,000 documented annual jobs in Florida, and we, together with the Florida Thoroughbred horsemen and our many partners, including the National Barrel Horse Association, have weathered this spurious litigation to protect them,” said Dr. Fisch.  “For each Florida pari-mutuel permit that has been misused during these past few years, thousands of horse racing and breeding jobs and businesses that would have otherwise been created have never had a chance to materialize.  It is the horsemen’s hope that, going forward, these permits will be used as the people of Florida intended—to create the kind of positive economic impact that only legitimate horse racing can bring.”

 

While Gretna’s cardrooms continued to operate, wagering on Gretna’s “pari-mutuel barrel racing” was recorded as low as $24 per day and contests there were often canceled due to lack of interest.  Just several months after the initial license was awarded with which “pari-mutuel barrel racing” was conducted, Gadsden County, in which the City of Gretna is located, approved the holding of a referendum to install slot machines at the Gretna Racing facility.

Gulfstream Park’s unusual GPTARP slots petition has Florida horsemen wary, Daily Racing Form’s Matt Hegarty Reports

An unusual regulatory petition is stirring confusion among Florida horsemen and breeders who do not know whether the request to the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering  indicates an attempt by GPTARP, as it is known, to conduct an end-run around legal requirements for a binding agreement with the Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (FHBPA).

“GPTARP,” the acronym for “Gulfstream Park Thoroughbred Aftercare Retirement Program,” is the new name for Gulfstream’s decades-old Quarter Horse permit, which was converted this past February 2013 into a Thoroughbred permit.

Last year, “GPTARP,” a non-profit entity, also sought to be declared as the lowest pari-mutuel revenue generator for a certain time period, so as to secure a “Summer Jai Alai” permit that would then, in turn, allow it to re-apply for another Quarter Horse permit.  The State of Florida turned down the request,  which was based on a phony “race” staged on April 8, 2012, featuring two Gretna “Pari-Mutuel Barrel Racing” women dressed up as jockeys and mounted on aged horses of questionable breeding that were bedecked in Western-style saddles.  The horses, one of which had been entered the same day as the “race,” were started at the drop of a flag.  Shockingly, wagering was offered on the event, which had not even been sanctioned by the American Quarter Horse Association as being a legitimate Quarter Horse race.  To round out GPTARP’s “meet,” a Thoroughbred race at Gulfstream on December 31, 2011 had been run under the GPTARP permit (likely unbeknownst to the entries’ connections).  It is predicated on these two “races” that GPTARP’s 2,000 slot machines would be installed, if allowed.

Also a remaining question is whether the GPTARP permit is domiciled in Miami-Dade or Broward.  The case is mired in administrative litigation.  Certainly, the actual location of GPTARP’s address given in the March 7, 2013 petition is troubling, with its “corporate offices” located on or off Gulfstream’s property, depending upon the source consulted.  According to the Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser, the address does not exist.

But Tim Ritvo, general manager of Gulfstream Park, said horsemen have no reason to fear the plans of GPTARP.  He said that under a contract the track reached with horsemen earlier this year “they are guaranteed a share of any revenue from slot machines if we exercise the permit.” The contract runs for at least 25 years, Ritvo said.

So why is GPTARP seeking clarification of the statute regarding the requirement to have an agreement with horsemen and breeders?

Matt Hegarty of the Daily Racing Form reports here:  http://www.drf.com/news/gulfstream-park-slots-petition-has-horsemen-wary 

Gretna Pari-Mutuel Barrel Racing Ruling–National News Coverage This Week

CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS

NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA
May 8, 2013

In a story Monday about a ruling involving the facility running barrel races in Gretna, the News Service incorrectly said, based on information from the source, that the parent company of Gretna Racing would appeal a DOAH ruling saying its license was invalid. Neither Gretna Racing, nor its parent company PCI Gaming, was actually a party to the case, and thus has no apparent standing to appeal.  An intervenor in the case is the Florida Quarter Horse Track Association, which shares leadership with Gretna, and of which Gretna Racing is a member. The actual party which lost was the state Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering.

 

Other media reports on the ruling follow . . .

Daily Racing Form:  Florida judge rejects track license

A Florida administrative law judge has struck down a decision by the state’s parimutuel regulator to award a license to a north Florida track that offers betting on barrel racing.

 

Miami Herald (Associated Press):  Panhandle barrel racing track loses legal fight ‎

An administrative judge has ruled that state regulators ignored the law when they allowed a Panhandle horse track to use barrel racing as way to bring gambling to a small town near the state capital.

 

Palm Beach Post:  Administrative judge nixes barrel racing licenses

The state of Florida erred when it licensed barrel racing at two North Florida racetracks, an administrative law judge ruled today.

 

Sunshine State News:  Judge Pulls the Reins In on Florida Barrel-Race Gambling

An administrative court judge ruled Monday that a state agency exceeded its authority two years ago when it gave gambling licenses to two North Florida barrel horse racing tracks.

 

Blood Horse:  Judge Rules Barrel Racing in Violation of Law

An administrative judge has ruled that state regulators ignored the law when they allowed a Panhandle horse track to use barrel racing as way to bring gambling to a small town near the state capital.

 

The News Service of Florida via Florida Baptist Witness:  Judge rules Gretna barrel racing license violated state law

Horse barrel racing shouldn’t have been approved by a state agency for wagering in Florida, an administrative law judge ruled May 6.

 

WTVT and WOFL FOX-TV:  Panhandle barrel racing track loses legal fight

An administrative judge is ruling that the state was wrong to let a Panhandle track conduct barrel racing.

 

TheHorse.com:  Judge Rules Pari-Mutuel Barrel Racing in Violation of Law

The ruling follows months of taxpayer-funded litigation in defense by of pari-mutuel barrel racing, for which there is no legislative authorization.

 

WFSU:  Florida Judge Strikes Down Gretna Barrel Racing

A Judge in Tallahassee has ruled that Florida can’t allow a certain type of horse racing. The ruling against what’s called “pari-mutuel barrel racing” came after 16 months of hearings.

 

Blog:  Pari-Mutuel Barrel Racing, We Hardly Knew Ye

An administrative law judge (ALJ) in Florida has issued a final ruling that has determined the Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering (DPMW) in Florida improperly issued a license for race dates to Gretna Entertainment for barrel racing.

 

U.S. Trotting/Standardbred Canada:  Ruling Against Pari-Mutuel Barrel Racing

After 16 long months of hearings and legal challenges, an administrative law judge in Tallahassee has ruled that the State of Florida cannot allow the conduct of pari-mutuel barrel racing under current law.

 

State Policy Allowing “Pari-Mutuel Barrel Racing” Struck Down by Florida Administrative Law Judge

Statement from United Florida Horsemen on the “Pari-Mutuel Barrel Racing” Ruling Issued on May 6, 2013:

ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE STRIKES DOWN STATE OF FLORIDA POLICY ALLOWING “PARI-MUTUEL BARREL RACING”

After 16 long months of hearings and legal challenges, an administrative law judge in Tallahassee has ruled that the State of Florida cannot allow the conduct of “pari-mutuel barrel racing” under current law.

The ruling follows months of taxpayer-funded litigation in vehement defense by the State of a new gambling product that was never legislated, never received a regulatory hearing or any public input.

“The State of Florida should be pleased with this ruling,” said Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association President Dr. Steve Fisch.  “It is well-written and consistent with the law.  This ruling will lend confidence to both Florida Quarter Horse and Thoroughbred breeders and owners that Florida is a legally safe and prosperous state in which to race and breed a superior horse.”

“The fact is, the majority of the barrel horse industry was against pari-mutuel barrel racing, since the ‘Gretna Model’ that was used did not provide the economic stimulus that was promised to their industry.  The leadership at National Barrel Horse Association seems to be pleased with the ruling.  Quarter Horses and Thoroughbreds alike can now race and breed without the fear that one of Florida’s major economic engines that produces thousands of the nation’s best race horses and provides tens of thousands of jobs would otherwise have been reduced to a farce that would only have required as few as 10 to 12 horses at a day’s performance, producing virtually no additional net jobs.

“The Florida Quarter Horse industry has produced multiple world champion racing Quarter Horses and four winners of the $2.4 million All-American Futurity.  The growth of both Florida’s Quarter Horse and Thoroughbred industries industry has been severely stymied by these questionable activities over the past few years.  But now, with this ruling, the thousands of owners and breeders of Florida race horses can get on with their business of producing jobs and green space for Floridians.

“As for Florida’s professional racing industry horsemen who have fought this battle, we have essentially paid the litigation bill at both ends.  And, we have endured the irony of knowing the very same owners of that new gambling product were actually litigating on behalf of the State of Florida against us.

“But this trial has been about far more than serving justice for an outright hijack of Florida’s legislative and regulatory process by a few special interests.

“Our fight has been about protecting the Florida horse racing industry’s $2.2 billion annual contribution to Florida’s economy that brings solid business, tourism and jobs to our state, as well as national and international prestige in the finest international horse racing communities.

“Our industry creates over 104,000 documented annual jobs in Florida, and we have weathered this spurious litigation to protect them.  Literally, as the “Gretna Pari-Mutuel Barrel Racing” model and its proliferating hybrids are substituted for legitimate horse racing by pari-mutuel permitholders as an end-run around Florida’s statutory requirements for slot machines and card rooms, thousands of horse racing and breeding jobs and businesses that would have otherwise been created have never had a chance to materialize.

“Thus, our battle has been about ensuring that generations of people, families and businesses that have built their livelihoods on horse racing can continue to invest and grow in Florida.

“It also has been about protecting the wagering public by ensuring the integrity of our product through the careful oversight of our independent horsemen’s associations.

“As this audacious case has dragged on, our policymakers have come to realize what we horsemen knew all along—that Gretna Racing LLC’s “pari-mutuel barrel racing” was simply the pilot project to bypass state and federal laws that protect and ensure integrity in the wagering and racing product throughout America.   But by virtually eliminating the need for horses, independent horsemen and legitimate racing, the “Gretna Model” creates nothing but an economic black hole.

“Indeed, those who otherwise would have invested in Florida horse racing and breeding have watched in in amazement as our industry stood under attack—all because of clever lawyering and loopholes that have now run amok.

“As lawful, independent and statutory horsemen’s organizations that have historically functioned as partners with Florida’s pari-mutuel permitholders to produce hundreds of millions in revenue and economic impact, our members hope to once again regard Florida as a permanent home, and that we prosper together in growing our economy as was the intent of awarding pari-mutuel permits to begin with.

“Simply, Florida’s economy and gambling landscape benefits exponentially with legitimate racing, but becomes a special interest vortex without it.

“On behalf of our owners, trainers and countless tireless workers who make Florida horse racing successful on both the national and international level, we are committed to ensuring our sport stays legitimate, so it can be enjoyed by generations to come.

“Remember, as Winston Churchill once said, ‘There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man.’”

 

Spectrum Gaming Group Selected For Comprehensive Legislative Gaming Study, Florida Horsemen Note

Florida’s Legislature announced today, April 16, 2013, that it has signed a contract with Spectrum Gaming Group to complete a comprehensive study on Florida’s gaming-related issues.

“Spectrum Gaming has extensive experience in a variety of major horse racing and breeding states, including Kentucky, Louisiana, Illinois and Ohio,” remarked Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association Executive Director Kent Stirling.

“Florida’s professional racing horsemen are pleased that the message of our $2.2 billion annual statewide economic impact has apparently been heard,” Stirling added.  “Legitimate horse racing and breeding in Florida generates 104,000 documented jobs per year, and it is imperative that any public policy going forward reflects the enormous financial contributions of thousands of small businesses that are both directly and indirectly supported by Florida’s horse racing industry.”

The Legislature’s gaming study, which will be addressed in separate reports delivered in July and October 2013, will provide a comprehensive analysis of gaming market information, to include an assessment of the Florida gaming industry and its economic and social effects, an assessment of various potential changes in the gaming industry and their potential economic and social effects (including effects on other areas of the economy), and a statistical analysis of relationships between gaming and economic variables for communities.

The Legislature’s news release is reprinted below.

Florida Legislature Signs Contract for Gaming Study

Spectrum Gaming Group Selected to Complete Comprehensive Study on Gaming Issues

Tallahassee–The Florida House and Senate today announced the joint selection of Spectrum Gaming Group to complete a two-part study of gaming in Florida to assist the Legislature in better understanding the economic, fiscal, and social impacts of possible changes in Florida’s gaming environment.

“Spectrum has extensive experience in providing independent studies of gaming in a variety of jurisdictions, including Massachusetts, Connecticut, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Ohio,” said Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford (R-Wesley Chapel). “I look forward to reviewing their report as we take a holistic view of the role gaming plays in Florida’s economy.”

The gaming study will provide a comprehensive analysis of gaming market information, to include: an assessment of the Florida gaming industry and its economic and social effects; an assessment of various potential changes in the gaming industry and their potential economic and social effects (including effects on other areas of the economy); and a statistical analysis of relationships between gaming and economic variables for communities.

“The Florida Lottery, Seminole casinos, and gaming activities at licensed pari-mutuel facilities generate substantial economic activity; however, the State’s management of these activities has been focused on piecemeal changes, not a comprehensive policy that integrates gaming into the broader Florida economy,” said Senate President Don Gaetz (R-Niceville). “This study will help House and Senate committees comprehensively examine gaming issues, including those that will affect the scheduled renegotiation of the Seminole Gaming Compact.”

“Spectrum is honored by this selection, as we realize the importance of this study to Florida’s policymakers in so many ways, from the future of its tourism industry to the quality of life for its citizens,” said Michael Pollock, Spectrum Gaming Group’s Managing Director.

The gaming study is divided into sub-parts, which will be addressed in separate reports delivered in July and October. The total cost of the two-part gaming study is $388,845. A complete description of the scope of work is contained at pages 11-13 of the Invitation to Negotiate, which can be found via the Gaming Study Home Page.

Spectrum’s project team includes: Dr. Howard Shaffer, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Division on Addiction at The Cambridge Health Alliance, a Harvard Medical School teaching affiliate; Regional Economic Models, Inc. (REMI); Doug Walker, Associate Professor of Economics at the College of Charleston; and, Lori Pennington-Gray, Associate Director of the Eric Friedheim Tourism Institute at the University of Florida.

Procurement Process

The Legislature conducted a competitive procurement process to select a vendor. An Invitation to Negotiate was issued in February. Seven vendors submitted replies by the deadline. An evaluation team composed of House and Senate staff reviewed the proposals in detail and selected three vendors for continued negotiations (Spectrum Gaming Group, The Innovation Group, and MGT of America). After negotiations, House and Senate staff provided recommendations to the Speaker Weatherford and President Gaetz, respectively, regarding the selection of a vendor to provide the highest overall value to the Florida Legislature.

For more information on the gaming study and procurement process, please visit the Gaming Study Home Page located at http://www.leg.state.fl.us/GamingStudy

 

“The Racing Journal” Asks: Gretna’s North Florida Horsemen’s Association and Pari-mutuel barrel racing . . . Where’d Florida get that crazy idea???

October 6, 2011     

To view this article on The Racing Journal Web site, go to:  http://www.theracingjournal.com/news/news-1705.html

 

Perhaps Wyoming Downs’s unproductive experiment with parimutuel team roping, which replaced racingin 2010, has inspired another industry-killing initiative, this time in Florida.A Gretna, Florida, Quarter Horse permit-holder has asked the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering (FDPMW) for permission to hold barrel racing starting in December 2011. The events themselves would not be open to parimutuel wagering, but the license would allow the permit-holder’s facility to operate a poker room.Many observers believe the application Gretna Racing filed on September 30 could change the definition of what activities are permissible under a Quarter Horse permit or any other parimutuel permit in Florida. Currently, any Florida parimutuel permit-holder that conducts at least the minimum number of required performances a year can operate a year-round poker room.The controversy surrounding the application recalls some of the arguments brought forward by Wyoming horsemen in December 2009, when Eric Spector of Wyoming Entertainment proposed conducting a parimutuel roping event at his facility so his company could continue to run simulcast operations throughout the state. The minutes from his conference call with members of the Wyoming Pari-Mutuel Commission (December 18, 2009) captured Spector’s reaction when asked if the event would be held instead of horseracing.”President Linford (of the Wyoming commission) posed the question as to whether or not this event would replace live horseracing, and Mr. Spector’s response was that it would not, that their plan is to continue to race at Wyoming Downs in 2010.”As Intermountain West horsemen know, that was not to be. TRJ hopes that Florida horsemen reach a better agreement to protect their industry.The Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association (FHPBA) and the Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association (FQHRA) have contacted the FDPMW, asking that they not approve the Gretna Racing Association application for barrel racing by Gretna Racing LLC based on their views that Florida laws on Quarter Horse racing limit that sport to conventional Quarter Horse races. Barrel racing is held as a non pari-mutuel event at numerous sites in northwestern Florida and other parts of the state.

In a September 18 letter to the FDPMW, FHBPA executive director Kent Stirling expressed his organization’s concern that granting Gretna Racing’s request “would open the door to other pari-mutuel licensees that currently operate live horse racing to do the same with their Quarter Horse licenses. We remind you that Gulfstream Park, Pompano Park, Tampa Bay Downs, Hialeah Park, and the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association all have Quarter Horse licenses.”

Stirling said the FHBPA is hoping to prevent any future efforts by tracks to substitute low-cost barrel racing for conventional race meets while keeping poker rooms and, in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, casinos.

The horsemen’s group is hoping the application will clarify the interpretation of definitions of horseracing and Quarter Horse racing in Florida parimutuel laws in determining whether Gretna Racing’s intended use of Quarter Horses makes barrel racing an eligible event. Current laws require a Quarter Horse meet to conduct at least half its races as Quarter Horse races. Other races in mixed meets under a Quarter Horse permit can include Thoroughbreds and other designated breeds.

Steven Fisch, DVM, president of the FQHRA, sees Gretna’s planned barrel racing meet as “an attempt to skirt the rules and have poker.” The FQHRA’s action follows its unsuccessful attempt to negotiate a purse agreement with Gretna Racing.

www.FHBPA.com

Follow the FHBPA on Twitter @FloridaHorsemen

Horse Racing Industry Abuzz With Disbelief Over Audacity of Job-Killing Florida Pari-Mutuel Barrel Scheme–Horsemen, Your Calls, Emails, Letters to Florida Regulators Needed NOW

URGENT CALL TO THE POST for Florida Horsemen!  Your calls, letters and emails to Department of Business and Professional Regulation Secretary Ken Lawson are needed BEFORE OCTOBER 25 to let him know you OPPOSE parimutuel barrel racing in Florida.  Please e-mail him at: Ken.Lawson@dbpr.state.fl.us  TODAY!

 The Blood Horse and The Paulick Report, both major Thoroughbred Horse Racing publications and blogs, are abuzz with contention about the “true motives” for Florida’s “farcical” consideration of an outrageous scheme to define “barrel racing,” (a rodeo event) as “horse racing.” 

“We are very alarmed at what appears to be an attempted end run around the Florida statutes to get a card room by a number of Florida lobbyists,” Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent & Protective Association executive director Kent Stirling wrote to Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation Secretary Ken Lawson.  “If (the license is granted), we feel it would open the door to other pari-mutuel licensees that currently operate live horse racing to do the same with their quarter horse licenses.”

Read both stories below (click on the headlines to access the blog comments):

Published October 6, 2011 in The Paulick Report, an International Thoroughbred Online News Magazine
Florida barrel racing application sparks controversy
by Ray Paulick | 10.06.2011
www.paulickreport.com

An application for a Quarter horse racing permit and card room license, submitted by a group that includes the Florida lobbyist for Frank Stronach’s Gulfstream Park, has raised serious concerns among both Quarter horse and Thoroughbred horsemen in the Sunshine State about its true motives.

The application for Gretna Racing LLC calls for two days of pari-mutuel wagering on the rodeo activity barrel racing at a site in the small town of Gretna, near the Florida-Georgia border just north of the state capital of Tallahassee. Gretna, with a population of just 1,700, is 88% African American and has a poverty rate of 37%, according to census figures.

If the license application is approved, it would be the first time barrel racing is considered a pari-mutuel activity anywhere in North America.

The application was submitted on Sept. 6 by PCI Gaming Authority, a division of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, which is listed as 70% owner of Gretna Racing; lobbyist Marc Dunbar, who counts Gulfstream Park among his clients; lobbyist Wallace McGee; and David Romanik, a former Gulfstream Park president under Stronach. Dunbar, McGee and Romanik own 10% each of Gretna Racing.

Executives with both the Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association and the Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association fear there could be something more sinister to the application than merely allowing locals to bet on a rodeo event – a precedent that would give Quarter horse permit holders the option to abandon live racing. Currently, Quarter horse permit holders are required to conduct a minimum of 20 days of live Quarter horse racing to maintain both a racing and card room permit.

Quarter horse permit holders include Gulfstream Park, Pompano Park, Tampa Bay Downs, Hialeah Park, and the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders and Owners Association.

“We are very alarmed at what appears to be an attempted end run around the Florida statutes to get a card room by a number of Florida lobbyists,” FHBPA executive director Kent Stirling wrote to the director of the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering. “If (the license is granted), we feel it would open the door to other pari-mutuel licensees that currently operate live horse racing to do the same with their quarter horse licenses.”

Stephen D. Fisch, DVM, president of the Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association, described the application to the Department of Business and Professional Regulation as “farcical” and said if approved would make a “mockery” of the application process and statutory requirements of a card room and Quarter horse racing licensing.

“Moreover, if licenses are granted by the department,” Fisch wrote, “it would invite similar affronts on the other types of horse racing – Thoroughbred racing and harness racing, by setting the misguided precedent that horse racing includes any competitive activity involving a horse. The ultimate result would be the inevitable diminution of the entire horse racing industry and the wholesale expansion of gambling. The growing number of Quarter horse permits issued in the state, most of them dormant, would suddenly be allowed to offer rodeo events as a pari-mutuel wagering activity in lieu of legitimate horse racing.”

Proponents of the license have enlisted the help of 11-time world champion barrel racer Charmayne James and the newly formed North Florida Horseman’s Association.

A call to the Tallahassee office of lobbyist Dunbar was not returned.

Published on October 6, 2011 in The Blood Horse, an International Thoroughbred Racing Magazine
Florida Horsemen Say Permit Threatens Racing
By Jim Freer
Updated: Thursday, October 6, 2011 5:55 PM
www.bloodhorse.com

A Florida Quarter Horse permitholder’s request to use its license to conduct pari-mutuel barrel racing events has generated concern and attracted criticism from state Thoroughbred racing leaders.

Gretna Racing LLC has asked the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering for permission to use its license for barrel racing beginning Dec. 1, 2011. Gretna is a town of about 1,750 people located in the Florida panhandle, northwest of Tallahassee.

Barrel racing is a rodeo-like event in which a horse and rider are timed racing in a cloverleaf pattern around three barrels. Pari-mutuel wagering commonly isn’t offered on the sport. If the Gretna company is allowed to use its license in this way, the facility would also be allowed to open a poker room.

A spokeswoman for the Florida DPMW said Oct. 4 “this is a unique issue, and a determination has not been made” on whether barrel racing is permissible under a Quarter Horse permit in Florida.

The Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association and the Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association have asked the Florida DPMW to not approve the application for barrel racing by Gretna Racing based on their views that Florida laws on Quarter Horse racing limit that sport to conventional Quarter Horse races. Barrel racing is held as a non pari-mutuel event at numerous sites in northwestern Florida and other parts of the state.

Wesley Cox, a board member of the North Florida Horsemen’s Association, said he expects that at least 80% of the horses would be Quarter Horses in barrel races at Gretna. Cox’s organization has a purse agreement under which its members would provide horses to Gretna Racing; he said he expects that some retired Thoroughbreds could be in barrel races at Gretna.

In a Sept. 18 letter to the Florida DPMW, Florida HBPA executive director Kent Stirling said his organization is concerned that granting Gretna Racing’s request “would open the door to other pari-mutuel licensees that currently operate live horse racing to do the same with their Quarter Horse licenses. We remind you that Gulfstream Park, Pompano Park, Tampa Bay Downs, Hialeah Park, and the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association all have Quarter Horse licenses.”

Stirling told The Blood-Horse the Florida HBPA is hoping to prevent any future efforts by tracks to substitute low-cost barrel racing for conventional race meets while keeping poker rooms and, in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, casinos.

Gretna Racing’s amended application, filed Sept. 30, raises the issue of what activities are permissible under a Quarter Horse permit or any other pari-mutuel permit in Florida. Any Florida pari-mutuel permit-holder that conducts at least the minimum number of required performances a year can have a poker room that can be open 365 days a year.

Poker is the main source of revenue growth at many non-horse pari-mutuel facilities in Florida. In its application, Gretna Racing said it plans to have a poker room.

The application lists the Poarch Creek Tribe, based in Atmore, Ala., as 70% owner of Gretna Racing. The American Indian tribe owns most of the land at the facility in Gretna, which is about 25 miles west of Tallahassee. It is land the Poarch Creeks purchased, and is thus not tribal land on which they could build a casino under federal laws.

The application lists David Romanik, a former Gulfstream Park president, and Marc Dunbar, a partner in the Pennington Law Firm in Tallahassee, as each owning 10% of Gretna Racing. Dunbar also is a lobbyist for Gulfstream Park and for several gaming equipment companies. Gulfstream is not affiliated with Gretna Racing.

Dunbar said Gretna Racing has a policy of not commenting on pending regulatory applications.

Gretna Racing plans to hold 40 barrel racing cards between Dec. 1, 2011, and Jan. 15, 2012. An important question is whether the Florida DPMW will have time to approve or deny Gretna Racing’s application before Dec. 1.

The Florida DPMW has 30 days, starting Sept. 30, to review the application and determine if it is complete. If it deems an application complete, it has up to 90 days to approve or deny it.

A central issue is an interpretation of definitions of horse racing and Quarter Horse racing in Florida pari-mutuel laws to determine if Gretna Racing’s intended use of Quarter Horses makes barrel racing an eligible event. Those laws require a Quarter Horse meet to have at least half its races as Quarter Horse races. Other races in mixed meets under a Quarter Horse permit can include Thoroughbreds and other designated breeds.

Dr. Steven Fisch, a veterinarian who is president of the Florida QHRA, said Gretna’s planned barrel racing meet “is an attempt to skirt the rules and have poker.”

Cox said the North Florida Horsemen’s Association, which was formed last year, reached agreement with Gretna Racing “because we also will provide horses for the non pari-mutuel events they plan to hold the rest of the year.”

“They want to make it a year-round equestrian center,” said Cox, who breeds and owns horses at a ranch in Quincy, Fla.

Hialeah Park is the only Florida track that holds Quarter Horse meets. It will hold its third meet from Dec. 10, 2011, through Feb. 16, 2012.

For the third consecutive meet, Hialeah has a purse agreement with the Florida QHRA. Also for the third straight meet, Hialeah does not plan to hold any Thoroughbred races under its Quarter Horse permit.

Hialeah is holding Quarter Horse meets primarily because a 2010 Florida law makes it eligible to have a casino with Las Vegas-style slot machines if it holds those meets. A state appeals court is considering a lawsuit by three other Miami-area pari-mutuels that challenges Hialeah’s legal right to have a casino.