SB 0344

AN ACT relative to thoroughbred horse racing.

SPONSORS: Sen. McCarley, Dist 6

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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

1 New Chapter; Apportionment of Thoroughbred Horseracing Revenues. Amend RSA by inserting after chapter 284 the following new chapter:

284-A:1 Purpose. Recognizing that the function of pari-mutuel racing is to promote the interests of the state by raising revenue, it is the declared purpose of the general court to support thoroughbred racing by maximizing the duration of the racing meet and to encourage the continued participation of horsemen by providing for the consistent and reasonable apportionment of revenues derived from live and simulcast thoroughbred horseracing in the state between licensees and the owners and trainers of horses which run at licensed thoroughbred racetracks.

I. "Gross simulcast handle" means all money from interstate wagers placed at a licensed facility and through telephonic, electronic, internet, and account wagering on races conducted at racetracks other than the licensed facility prior to payment of any taxes, expenses, and fees.

II. "Horsemen's purses" means the total payments by a licensee to the owners who race at a licensed facility during a racing meet.

III. "Horsemen" means the owners of thoroughbred horses which run at a licensed facility and their authorized representative.

IV. "ITW net revenue" means all money from interstate wagers placed on races conducted at the licensed facility which are broadcast at facilities other than the licensed facility less the expense associated with selling and delivering the licensed facility's simulcast signal.

V. "Licensee" means any individual, association, partnership, joint venture, corporation, or other organization or entity which holds a license under RSA 284 to conduct a thoroughbred race meet.

VI. "Licensed facility" means a racetrack which is owned or controlled by a licensee at which thoroughbred horseracing has been authorized by the pari-mutuel commission.

VII. "Net revenue" means the gross simulcast handle less any deductions required under law and less the actual expenses associated with purchasing and delivering a licensed facility's simulcast signal.

VIII. "Person" means any individual, association, corporation, partnership, joint venture, or other organization or entity who makes or accepts a wager placed on a thoroughbred race.

IX. "Racing day" means a day on which there are no fewer than 7 live thoroughbred races run at a licensed facility.

X. "Racing meet" means the annual meet of thoroughbred racing which a licensed facility is authorized to conduct by the pari-mutuel commission.

XI. "Simulcast" means a licensee's receipt of the transmission of races conducted at a racetrack other than the licensee's racetrack and which races are exhibited simultaneously at the licensee's racetrack by television or other means of electronic reproduction with the conduct of such races at the point of origin.

XII. "Wagering system" means any telephonic, broadband, electronic, digital, internet, or account wagering system used by a licensed facility to accept interstate and intrastate wagers on live or simulcast racing conducted at the licensed facility.

284-A:3 Live Thoroughbred Racing. A licensee shall conduct live racing on 100 separate racing days except when racing is prevented due to weather, natural or unnatural catastrophe, or any other condition beyond the control of the licensee such as fire, epidemic, breakdown of equipment, loss of power, or labor strike not consisting of or arising from a recognized contract action. The number of separate racing days may be reduced to no fewer than 76 upon the agreement of a licensed facility and the horsemen. If a portion or all of a racing day is cancelled, the licensee shall reschedule live racing in order to conduct no fewer than 700 live races during a scheduled racing meet.

I. A licensee shall pay from the net revenue wagered at a licensed facility or through a wagering system on simulcast races at the licensed facility as follows:

(b) The pari-mutuel commission shall receive .05 percent for the purpose of testing horses as provided for under RSA 284.

II. A licensed facility shall pay to the horsemen's purses for a racing meet 50 percent of ITW net revenues on the races conducted at the licensed facility.

III. Any facility authorized by the pari-mutuel commission to simulcast thoroughbred racing within the state shall pay 1/3 of net revenue from wagers placed on such races to the horsemen's purses.

IV. Any person who accepts a wager from a person located within the state on a thoroughbred race which generates a source market fee shall pay 5 percent of such source market fee to a licensed facility, and pay 5 percent of such market fee to the horsemen's purses.

I. There shall be a state pari-mutuel commission consisting of 6 members appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the council. Three of the members shall represent the interests of greyhound racing. Three of the members, one of whom shall be a member of the New England Horsemen's Benevolent and Protection Agency, shall represent the interests of thoroughbred horse racing and harness horse racing. Each member shall hold office for a term of 3 years and until a successor has been appointed and qualified. Any vacancy shall be filled for the unexpired term. Annually, one member shall be chosen chairperson by the commission, and one shall be chosen as secretary.

284:32-a Annual Financial Statements Required. Every person, association, or corporation conducting a race or race meet, except those conducted by agricultural fairs, shall annually submit to the commission on or before June 1 an annual financial report of the entity licensed to conduct the race or race meet. The report shall include, at a minimum, a balance sheet, an income statement, a statement of changes in retained earnings, a statement of changes in financial position and the applicable notes to those financial statements for the prior year's operations of the person, association, or corporation, audited by a public accountant or certified public accountant licensed to practice in the state of New Hampshire in accordance with RSA 309-A. Said audit and the auditor's report shall conform to generally accepted auditing standards as prescribed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. The annual financial report shall be a public record in accordance with RSA 91-A.

The Pari-Mutuel Commission indicates this bill may have an indeterminable fiscal impact on state revenue in FY 2003 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on county and local revenue or state, county and local expenditures.

The Commission states this bill apportions .05 percent of net revenue wagered on simulcast races to the Commission for the purpose of testing horses. The Commission states the amount by which state revenue will increase is indeterminable.

The Commission also states the apportionment of revenue may financially restrict licensees and cause them to curtail operations that, in turn, would result in lower revenues. As revenues decline so would the amount of state tax collected on that revenue. The Commission could not provide an estimate on this possibility.