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TOWN HALL MEETING
TOWN HALL MEETING
The New Mexico Horse Breeders’ Association held a “Town Hall”-style meeting on July 31 during Zia Festival weekend at Ruidoso Downs.
Several issues were discussed during
the meeting. NMHBA trustee Vanessa Alexander distributed copies of the federal Horseracing Safety and Integrity Act,
which was signed into law by President Donald Trump on December 21, 2020
and is scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2022. Under the legislation, the act would set standards for medication and safety practices at racetracks and enforce those standards through state racing commissions. The act is intended to establish a uniform approach to better protect horses and jockeys and bolster the strength and fairness of the sport.
Also discussed was the “Legislator’s Day at the Races,” held August 6 at Ruidoso Downs. Organized by NMHBA trustees Annette McCloy and Norma Alvarez, the Legislator’s Day was designed to introduce New Mexico legislators to the state’s
horse racing industry and emphasize its importance to the state’s overall economy. During the day, Norma Alvarez discussed the impact of the state’s racehorse breeding program, Ruidoso Downs’ chaplain Darrell Winter discussed the work his organization does to help backstretch workers, and a light lunch was served. One of the races
at Ruidoso Downs that day was named to
honor the day.
The NMHBA’s stakes committee,
consisting of trustees Mike Logan, Helen Nave, Verner Query and Mark Brown, announced news regarding future stakes for New Mexico-bred racehorses. Ruidoso Downs added a Mountain Top Derby for state-bred Quarter Horses, which had
its inaugural running on June 19. The committee also announced that Sunland Park was eliminating its Copper Top Futurity (R) for New Mexico-bred 2-year- old Thoroughbreds, but it added that track management would be adding purse money to its’ New Mexico Breeders’ Oaks (R) and New Mexico Breeders’ Derby (R) for state- bred 3-year-old Thoroughbreds.
In addition, the committee announced that Zia Park would be adding a New Mexico Cup Juvenile Stakes (R) for 2-year- old Quarter Horses who record the 11th- 20th fastest qualifying times to the New Mexico Cup Futurity (RG2), and that there will be a $1-million futurity at Albuquerque Downs in 2023.
Also at the Town Hall meeting, a video promoting New Mexico horse racing was shown that will appear as an advertisement on The Cowboy Channel. The video, which trustee Norma Alvarez described
as “positive and informative,” will also be seen at tracks during the Bank of America Racing Challenge in October. The cost
to produce the ad was $14,500, and
Albuquerque Downs contributed $7,000 toward its production.
Trustee Mike Logan discussed the NMHBA’s export broodmare program and the board’s desire to make it more “user friendly.” A question was asked as to how many people use the program, and NMHBA executive director Mary Barber replied that it was about $65,000 per year.
Trustee Mark Brown talked about the importance of NMHBA members and others involved in New Mexico’s racing industry getting involved in the legislative process.
“Our industry lives and dies by laws,
but they change,” Mr. Brown stated. “The industry needs to be involved and support legislation that will protect and help us, and we need to watch out for legislation that will hurt us. We need to continue to work to keep the legislators on our side.”
Mr. Brown also said that the proposed legislation that would have approved advance deposit wagering (ADW) in the state didn’t pass “because we got pushback from the tribes, who referred to it as ‘internet gambling.’
“Also, a bill that would have given $1.5 million in capital-improvement tax breaks to tracks to upgrade their facilities failed,” he added. “The general atmosphere is that people don’t understand the economic impact of our industry. One horse equals seven jobs for people. Remember, the 2022 legislative session is a short one -- 30 days.”
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