What’s Racing Through Washington – October 2022

Welcome to the inaugural What’s Racing Through Washington newsletter! NTRA is excited to add this new member benefit as a part of our expanded efforts in Washington, DC. With a new Congress on the horizon, it is increasingly important to understand the latest policy developments and potential impacts to our industry. We hope you will enjoy this monthly newsletter and we look forward to engaging with you more on issues impacting our industry.

Congress Passes Government Funding into December

On Friday, September 30, Congress approved the Continuing Resolution (CR) which will fund the government until December 16, 2022. CRs fund the government at the same pre-existing appropriations levels as the previous fiscal year (or with minor modifications) for a set amount of time. This means much of what is in this legislation is already the status quo. The good news for the Thoroughbred industry is there were not any new tax implications that will impact our industry with this legislation. The CR sets the table for a larger omnibus funding package in December. This future package could be a potential opportunity for key tax provisions, such as 3-year depreciation for racehorses and bonus depreciation to be included in that legislation. NTRA will continue to advocate before Congress for passage of or continuation of tax policies that will stimulate investment and economic activity for our industry.

Midterm Election Outlook

With the midterm elections less than a month away, Republicans’ diminishing national tailwinds — along with some struggling candidates — have imperiled the GOP’s fight to flip the Senate. When the year began, it looked like the national environment would overcome a difficult map for the GOP. Of the 35 seats up in 2022, 21 are already held by Republicans. All of the 14 Democratic seats are in states that also voted for now-President Joe Biden in 2020 — limiting Republicans’ offensive opportunities. Of the GOP’s top four targets when the cycle began, Georgia and Nevada appear most promising for Democrats. Arizona has moved toward Democrats since that state’s primary. Democrats, meanwhile, are honing in on two states Biden carried that Republicans currently hold: Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Their target list also includes an open seat in North Carolina, while also mounting well-funded but uphill challenges in Florida and Ohio. If the two parties split the four “Toss-Ups”, Democrats will retain control, with each party holding 50 seats. In regard to the battle for the House of Representatives, despite their declining fortunes in some districts, Republicans are still on track for a House takeover. 212 seats are now at least leaning toward Republicans, compared with 198 leaning toward Democrats. (There are 25 “Toss Up” districts.)

Thoroughbred Industry Signals Strong Support for HISA in Letter to Congressional Leadership

On September 7, 2022, the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) sent a letter to leaders on Capitol Hill expressing the overwhelming support from the Thoroughbred breeding and racing industry for the newly implemented Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA). Authored by NTRA President and CEO Tom Rooney (former Member of Congress from 2009-2019), the letter applauded HISA CEO Lisa Lazarus and the HISA Authority’s initial efforts to improve the safety and welfare of Thoroughbred racing as a whole and bring national uniformity to the sport. The letter was addressed to the offices of Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. Cosignatories of the letter include 20 NTRA member racetracks representing nearly 70% of the 2021 U.S. pari-mutuel handle. The letter was also co-signed by the president of the Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association (THA) and chairman of the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC), which together represent nearly 30,000 owners and trainers in the United States. Breeders’ Cup Limited, The Jockey Club, and the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association also endorsed the letter along with leading veterinarians, present or past members of state racing commissions, and National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame member jockeys Jerry Bailey and Chris McCarron and trainers Claude R. “Shug” McGaughey and Todd Pletcher. Click here to view the letter.

US Department of Labor Announces Final Rule to Improve H-2A Visa Program

With some in the industry utilizing the H-2A visa program to help supplement their labor needs, the Department of Labor announced on October 6, 2022, a final rule to amend H-2A temporary labor certification regulations to protect agricultural workers better, and to update the H-2A application and temporary labor certification process. The rule will go into effect on November 14, 2022. The H-2A program allows employers to address temporary labor needs by employing foreign agricultural workers when there are not sufficient workers who are able, willing, qualified, and available, and when doing so will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of workers similarly employed in the U.S.

The new rule includes the following important elements:

• Improves safety and health protections for workers housed in rental or public accommodations.
• Streamlines and updates bond requirements for labor contractors to better hold them accountable and clarifies joint-employer status for employers and associations.
• Clarifies the housing certification process to allow state and local authorities to conduct housing inspections.
• Establishes explicit authority to debar attorneys and agents for their misconduct, independent of an employer’s violations.
• Makes electronic filing mandatory for most applications to improve employers’ processing efficiency.
• Modernizes the methodology and procedures for determining the prevailing wage to allow state workforce agencies to produce more prevailing wage findings.

Read the final rule to amend H-2A temporary labor certification regulations at the Federal Register.

Update on Additional H-2B Visas for FY 2023

Last week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Department of Labor (DOL), announced they will be issuing a regulation that will make an additional 64,716 H-2B temporary nonagricultural worker visas available to employers for fiscal year (FY) 2023, on top of the 66,000 H-2B visas that are normally available each fiscal year. By making these supplemental visas available at the outset of the fiscal year, which began on October 1, 2022, those in the horse industry, such as trainers, who rely heavily on the H-2B visa program to fill various backside positions, will be able to better address some of their labor needs this fiscal year.

Read more here.