PA Shutdown?
Oct 22, 2015 16:00:16 GMT -5
Post by cait on Oct 22, 2015 16:00:16 GMT -5
if there's no 4, how can the racing fund pay 9M for testing? wouldn't putting all of those working in the industry cost the state a ton? seems unrealistic = politics and racing - bad bad bad - the politicos grab the $ and do little to help the industry - while I didn't like O'Malley (MD gov running for pres) he was an exception and understood the racing industry economics importance to the state - and he took on stronach!!
A halt to horse racing in Pa.?
Angela Couloumbis, Inquirer Harrisburg Bureau
HARRISBURG - Citing a decrease in wagering and the ongoing budget stalemate, Gov. Wolf may halt horse racing statewide as soon as next week, his spokesman said Thursday.
The spokesman, Jeff Sheridan, said the State Racing Fund has been struggling with declining revenue for years and propped up by one-time fixes. The three-month budget impasse has also blocked new money from flowing into the fund.
"There is a serious problem with the overall funding, and we do not have the resources to maintain the integrity of that fund anymore," Sheridan said. "If there is not a solution reached by next Friday, we will have to shut racing down."
The fund pays for licensing, safety measures, staffing of an equine laboratory and drug-testing of horses, among other things. It gets funded through a tax on horse wagers, which have been steadily declining for years.
To help fill the gaping hole, the legislature and previous administrations have propped it up using dollars from another pot of money funded by slots revenue. The six tracks statewide that offer horse or harness racing - including Parx in Belsalem and Harrah's in Chester - also have casinos.
Wolf has proposed moving $6.5 million into the racing fund this year, largely as a stopgap measure, but supports legislation calling for long-term fixes, among them, having the industry take over the cost of drug-testing, which runs about $9 million annually.
That bill, sponsored by Sen. Elder Vogel (R., Beaver) has passed the Senate and is now in the House of Representatives.
Sheridan said that unless there is an agreement by next week on the bill - and on the amount of money that needs to be transferred into the racing fund as part of any final budget agreement - the administration won't be able to keep the fund operating.
Auditor General Eugene DePasquale warned last summer about the impending doom for the horse racing industry. His audit of the State Racing Fund found the Department of Agriculture had overbilled the fund to cover budget shortfalls.
"If the State Racing Fund goes bankrupt, the racing industry would shut down," DePasquale said at the time.
A halt to horse racing in Pa.?
Angela Couloumbis, Inquirer Harrisburg Bureau
HARRISBURG - Citing a decrease in wagering and the ongoing budget stalemate, Gov. Wolf may halt horse racing statewide as soon as next week, his spokesman said Thursday.
The spokesman, Jeff Sheridan, said the State Racing Fund has been struggling with declining revenue for years and propped up by one-time fixes. The three-month budget impasse has also blocked new money from flowing into the fund.
"There is a serious problem with the overall funding, and we do not have the resources to maintain the integrity of that fund anymore," Sheridan said. "If there is not a solution reached by next Friday, we will have to shut racing down."
The fund pays for licensing, safety measures, staffing of an equine laboratory and drug-testing of horses, among other things. It gets funded through a tax on horse wagers, which have been steadily declining for years.
To help fill the gaping hole, the legislature and previous administrations have propped it up using dollars from another pot of money funded by slots revenue. The six tracks statewide that offer horse or harness racing - including Parx in Belsalem and Harrah's in Chester - also have casinos.
Wolf has proposed moving $6.5 million into the racing fund this year, largely as a stopgap measure, but supports legislation calling for long-term fixes, among them, having the industry take over the cost of drug-testing, which runs about $9 million annually.
That bill, sponsored by Sen. Elder Vogel (R., Beaver) has passed the Senate and is now in the House of Representatives.
Sheridan said that unless there is an agreement by next week on the bill - and on the amount of money that needs to be transferred into the racing fund as part of any final budget agreement - the administration won't be able to keep the fund operating.
Auditor General Eugene DePasquale warned last summer about the impending doom for the horse racing industry. His audit of the State Racing Fund found the Department of Agriculture had overbilled the fund to cover budget shortfalls.
"If the State Racing Fund goes bankrupt, the racing industry would shut down," DePasquale said at the time.