California Tracks at Odds Over Regulatory Cost Split

Officials from California racetracks, who battled over race dates in Northern California earlier this year, now are at odds over costs needed to fund the California Horse Racing Board.

Speaking May 16 during a meeting of the CHRB in Sacramento, Calif., the board’s executive director Scott Chaney said industry stakeholders and the board would need to determine an allocation of costs by its June 20 meeting to be in place before the CHRB’s fiscal year begins July 1.

Del Mar president Josh Rubinstein informed the board that Southern California Thoroughbred tracks currently pay 80% of the state’s regulatory costs. Their larger share is due to their higher handle, which could shift to more of a 50/50 split between Southern and Northern California if a fee structure is established based on race days rather than wagering totals.

Representatives from smaller tracks in the state, ranging across breeds, believe such action would place a burden on their already cash-strapped operations.

Chaney and board members from the CHRB pledged to work with stakeholders in the five weeks before the next meeting.

Chaney said afternoon racing handle was down 18% in April, a troubling figure partially due to the cancellation of some race cards due to insufficient entries at Golden Gate Fields, which is closing in June.

Purses for the upcoming Thoroughbred race meetings at Pleasanton and Los Alamitos Race Course are forecast to drop about 10% this summer relative to 2023.