The Kentucky Derby pulled nearly 20 million viewers this month, and the horse racing lobby isn't wasting the good press. With the Preakness this Saturday, The Jockey Club sent its president, Jim Gagliano, and top lobbyist Shawn Smeallie to the Hill this week to make their asks while lawmakers are still paying attention.
The main item is the SAFE Act — a bill led by Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) — that would permanently ban shipping American horses to slaughterhouses in Mexico and Canada. Animal welfare groups say tens of thousands of horses are still crossing the border each year, and the industry wants to end the practice for good.
The bill has real momentum, with it up to 229 House cosponsors after picking up New York Republican Nick Langworthy this week, putting nearly the entire New York — where the Belmont Stakes will take place in the coming weeks — delegation on board.
To keep the pressure on, the racing lobby brought an unusually eclectic crew to the Hill, including the ASPCA, the Animal Welfare Institute and Black Beauty filmmaker Ashley Avis. They kicked the week off Tuesday night at Café Riggs with a reception cheekily named "Lost Horse" before hitting the offices.
Sources told us Gagliano and Smeallie met with Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Dave McCormick (R-Pa.) and Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), plus Reps. Jimmy Patronis (R-Fla.) and Dina Titus (D-Nev.) and staff on the Senate Commerce Committee.
They also huddled with Joe DeFrancis of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority.
“History was just made at the Kentucky Derby as a record-breaking audience saw an unprecedented first-place finish by a horse trained by a woman and co-owned by a woman. American horse racing is a proud and growing tradition, and we’re working every day to make its future brighter. That’s why The Jockey Club and our partners in Thoroughbred racing are working with Animal Welfare groups to pass legislation to prohibit once and for all the slaughter of horses,” Gagliano said in a statement.
While the bill is picking up steam, the cattle industry and some Native American groups are pushing back, with some proponents trying to attach the language to the Farm Bill rather than move it standalone.
In addition to the animal welfare push, The Jockey Club is also looking to kill a 90 percent gambling deduction buried in the reconciliation package, warning it'll push heavy bettors offshore and slice track handles by as much as 8 percent.
Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) — who is vying to be the Bluegrass State’s next senator — has a has helped lead efforts on the WAGER Act, and while the Ways and Means chairman has signaled interest, a real tax vehicle probably won't move until the end of the year.
