Page 26 - 16 March 2012

losing sloTs
ontario racing fights to keep slot revenue.
It is vital to the future of all horse racing in Ontario that the Slots At Racetracks program be preserved.
by Kim Ito
The Ontario Horse racing industry is currently under attack, as all breeds racing in Ontario were given a nasty shock on Feb. 15, when the provincial government announced that they would be looking closely at modifying, or even eliminating, the “Slots At Racetracks” program. The program is
a revenue sharing agreement between the province, through Ontario Lottery and Gaming (OLG), and municipalities, track owners and horsemen.
Bad news for the racing industry came from Don Drummond, chair of the commission on public- service reform. In his 668-page report, filled with 362 recommended reforms to help bring the province’s deficit under control by 2018, the racing industry’s future in Ontario was darkened by recommendations such as: “Re-evaluate, on a value-for-money basis, the practice of providing a portion of net slot revenues to the horse racing and breeding industry and munici- palities in order to substantially reduce and better target that support.” In other words, the government should consider clawing back some or all of the $345 million dollars a year in slot revenue divided primar- ily between track owners and horsemen’s groups.
While leaders from all horsemen’s groups in Ontario are urging their members to speak out against the proposed cuts, the Ontario Horse Racing Industry Association (OHRIA), representing all breed racing in Ontario, is spearheading the public campaign and taking a strong stand against these recommendations.
It has been an uphill battle from the beginning as misinformation about the program has been fed to the public in order to garner support for its termina- tion. The current premier of Ontario, Liberal Party member Dalton Mcguinty, has added fuel to the fire with some controversial radio ads, which refer to the program as a “secret subsidy for a few, very wealthy racetrack owners...Are we really going to spend more on horse racing than full day kindergarten?”
Sue Leslie, president of OHRIA, speaks loud
and clear against such accusations, using facts and figures to support her claims. “The OLG Slots at Racetrack Program is a highly profitable venture for the Government of Ontario. By trying to remove the horse racing industry’s portion from the expense, the Liberals will end up removing the slots, and forgoing $1.1 billion a year of revenue, adding to Ontario’s deficit,” said Leslie. “Nothing is ‘secret’ about the OLG Slots at Racetrack program, as the Ontario
Liberals falsely claim in their attack ads.”
Through interviews, press releases and their newly
launched website, www.value4money.ca, OHRIA is bringing to light the true numbers as pertain to the rac- ing industry in Ontario. A “Fact Sheet” from their web- site gives an accurate depiction of the economic impact of the racing industry on the rest of the province:
• $261 million dollars in revenue for the province of Ontario exclusive of slot revenue;
• An estimated 60,000 jobs are attributed to the horse racing and breeding industry;
• $1.5 billion dollars in wages and salaries are sus- tained annually by the total expenditures of the horse racing industry;
• OLG’s resort casinos have lost millions of dollars, the Slots at Racetracks Program has returned bil- lions of dollars in revenue;
• The Ontario horse racing industry spends approxi- mately $2 billion dollars per year on goods and services relating to their trade, with 80 percent of that money spent primarily in rural, agricultural communities; and,
• Hosting a racetrack is a real boon for municipal governments who receive approximately 5 percent of slot revenue for local programs, sports teams, roads & bridges and emergency services.
OHRIA has also announced plans to start a “an
intensive six-week grass-roots campaign to inform both the public and the Government of the economic impact of the horse racing industry in the Province of Ontario.”
It is vital to the future of all horse racing in Ontario that the Slots At Racetracks program be preserved. At present the vast majority of the fund- ing for Ontario QHRIDP (Quarter Horse Racing Industry Development Program) programs, from breeders awards to purse monies and added stake money, comes from this revenue sharing agreement. Without this agreement, it is questionable whether the industry can survive. This uncertainly is already showing in some breeders deciding not to breed their mares this season.
Whatever decisions the government makes will likely not be clear until the annual budget is brought forward at the end of this month. The 2012 and 2013 race seasons will likely be unaffected by any of the changes, and possibly even for a few years longer if the government honours contracts that are currently in place. For more information on the fight to save Ontario racing, visit www.value4money.ca.
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SPEEDHORSE, March 16, 2012
AROUND THE GLOBE