Increases the excess limit for funds in the New York state thoroughbred breeding and development fund from seventy-five thousand dollars to five hundred thousand dollars.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A8838A
SPONSOR: Woerner TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law, in
relation to the New York state thoroughbred breeding and development
fund
PURPOSE:
To enable the State Thoroughbred Breeding and Development Fund to imple-
ment stronger financial planning practices by authorizing the Fund to
maintain a fund balance at the end of each calendar year into the next
calendar year.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1. Amends paragraph h of Section 254 of the racing, pari-mutuel
wagering and breeding law to change the statutory limitation on the Fund
carrying over from no more than $75,000 to $500,000 from year to year.
Section 2. Effective Date.
JUSTIFICATION:
The New York State Thoroughbred Breeding and Development Fund oversees
the registration process for foals and stallions, and distributes incen-
tives in the form of awards. There are some years where the Fund
distributes significant awards, and there are other years where there is
reason to have less distributions. Smart budgeting would enable the Fund
to plan for those more robust years and to manage the years where there
are less awards (such as was the case during COVID). The existing
$75,000 cap has been in place since the statute was enacted over forty
years ago. Adjusting the cap of $75,000 that can be carried over into
the next calendar year will promote stability and better financial plan-
ning for purposes of distributing breeding Fund awards and payments and
meeting formulated distribution schedules based on reasonable estimates.
The ability to retain monies will provide the Fund with flexibility to
adapt to economic circumstances. There is no practical economic detri-
ment to any of the entities that are statutory beneficiaries of the
return of unused contributions as there has been no return of undistrib-
uted monies for more than twenty years.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2012: Similar to A.9778/S.7171
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to state.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
8838--A
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
June 9, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. WOERNER -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Racing and Wagering -- committee discharged, bill amended,
ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law, in
relation to the New York state thoroughbred breeding and development
fund
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The second undesignated paragraph of subdivision 2 of
2 section 254 of the racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law, as
3 amended by chapter 18 of the laws of 2008, is amended to read as
4 follows:
5 All moneys of the fund in excess of [seventy-five] five hundred thou-
6 sand dollars on hand at the end of each calendar year shall be appor-
7 tioned between and paid to the state and the regional off-track betting
8 corporations based on the level of contributions to such fund during the
9 year by the racing corporations and the regional off-track betting
10 corporations, respectively. Payment of such money to the state and such
11 corporations, respectively, shall be made by March fifteenth of the year
12 following the close of such calendar year.
13 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13199-02-5
