Relates to resources of agriculture and New York state horse breeding development fund designated to educate, promote, advertise and protect the standardbred breeding industry.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A3027
SPONSOR: Pretlow TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law, in
relation to resources of the agriculture and New York state horse breed-
ing development fund designated to educate, promote, advertise and
protect the standardbred breeding industry
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To provide a secure, stable funding stream from the Agriculture and New
York State Horse Breeding Development Fund to support the education,
promotion and protection of the standardbred breeding industry.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 332 Racing, Pari-mutuel Wagering and Breeding law is amended to
provide a percentage of funding from the Agriculture and New York State
Horse Breeding Development Fund to enhance the educational, administra-
tive and promotional efforts of the Harness Horse Breeders of New York
State
JUSTIFICATION:
The New York Sire Stakes program, established in 1961, was created by
the Harness Horse Breeders of New York State (HHBNY) and was the first
program of its kind developed in North America and later became the
model for state-bred racing programs in nearly all of the major harness
racing states and provinces on the continent. HHBNY was also instru-
mental in establishing the Agriculture and New York State Horse Breeding
Development Fund, which collects a portion of handle to redistribute to
state-bred .horses through the New York Sire Stakes program. Under the
leadership of the Fund and in concert with HHBNY, purses for the New
York Sire Stakes have grown from $300,000 in 1961 to over $13 million
today.
HHBNY has a longstanding history of planning and managing the New York
Sire Stakes racing program, while working to educate the public about
standardbred breeding and racing in New York. For almost 50 years, the
Fund has contracted with the organization to perform many of these crit-
ical functions, but the annual contracting process has become time
consuming, cumbersome and has led to drastically reduced funding for
HHBNY. This in turn has forced the organization to lay off staff and
curtail their critical duties. This bill seeks to remove HHBNY from
yearly contract uncertainty and provide a steady, secure funding stream
from the Fund to the organization so that they can best fulfill their
longstanding and critical duties.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
A1673 2021-2022 referred to racing and wagering
A4468 2019-2020 referred to racing and wagering
A1899 01/13/18 referred to racing and wagering
A1286 2016-2017 referred to racing and wagering
A3705 2014-2015 referred to racing and wagering
A3649 2011-2012 referred to racing and wagering
A10567 2009-2010 referred to racing and wagering
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the General Fund
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
3027
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 2, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PRETLOW -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Racing and Wagering
AN ACT to amend the racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law, in
relation to resources of the agriculture and New York state horse
breeding development fund designated to educate, promote, advertise
and protect the standardbred breeding industry
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 332 of the racing, pari-mutuel
2 wagering and breeding law is amended by adding a new paragraph k to read
3 as follows:
4 k. An amount equal to two percent thereof in an account designated "to
5 educate, promote, advertise and protect" the standardbred breeding
6 industry by the not-for-profit trade organization, governed by a board
7 of directors elected by its general membership, representing the majori-
8 ty of standardbred horse breeders in the state of New York.
9 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08079-01-3
