NY breeders lash out at irresponsible NYC OTB

[Kasept]

New York breeders make statement at OTB hearing
by Paul Post

http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/nat...B-hearing.aspx

New York breeders made a dramatic statement during Friday’s state hearing on the future of New York City Off-Track Betting Corp.

New York Thoroughbred Breeders Executive Director Jeff Cannizzo was accompanied by a four-foot tall mock headstone representing the state’s Thoroughbred breeding industry to underscore his testimony that if New York City OTB is allowed to reduce payments to breeders, it will threaten the very existence of Thoroughbred racing in New York.

New York City OTB has filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy and wants the state to change its system of statutory payments to racetracks and breeders as well as state and local government. Officials claim that distributions should be based on net income instead of gross income.

“This accounting trick will dramatically reduce revenues to those who are at the heart and soul of Thoroughbred racing, remove OTB accountability, and create a death spiral for an industry that employs tens of thousands of New Yorkers,” Cannizzo told state lawmakers.

“If OTB distributions to Thoroughbred breeders disappear, on top of the current financial distress breeders are suffering, the breeding industry will be decimated, putting the racing industry here in New York out of business. Without the product—the horses—there will be no race to hold, no ticket to wager, and no handle to disburse.”

The hearing on Friday before the Assembly and Senate Committees on Racing, Wagering, and Gaming was held in Manhattan. The New York Racing Association already has filed a legal objection to OTB’s bankruptcy petition, charging that it was not filed in good faith and should be thrown out of federal court.