Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act
Tucson, AZ —On Wednesday, February 17, 2021 the RTIP welcomed NTRA President and CEO Alex Waldrop to the Hirsch Speaker Series. Via Zoom, Waldrop gave a brief overview of the NTRA, before jumping right into the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act 2020.
“Although the Horseracing Integrity Act was first introduced in 2013, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020 is really a culmination of efforts that began in earnest after the death of Eight Belles in 2008,” said Waldrop. “The spotlight put on the industry by the winter at Santa Anita in 2019 and the Federal indictments of trainers and veterinarians for PED last spring made it clear that something needed to be done to address these issues.”
“HISA was ten years in the making and those two issues, mentioned above, were coupled with the fact that they tried self-regulation but had no power to enforce. The states made their own rules, some that met the recommended standards and others that fell short. Uniformity of rules and enforcement along with independence are the cornerstones of HISA,” Waldrop explained.