Bill Summary for Bill Number HB09-1152

Date: 02/18/2009

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB09-1152

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON FINANCE

Votes: View-->	Action Taken:
Moved to postpone House Bill 09-1152 indefinitely. Refer House Bill 09-1152 to the Committee on Appro	PASS FAIL

10:46 AM -- House Bill 09-1152 - Concerning Horse Racing

Representative Sonnenberg, prime sponsor, explained the provisions of the bill and noted that it is a product of a grassroots effort by the industry. He began by explaining that House Bill 09-1152 authorizes two new methods of conducting pari-mutuel wagering on horse races: advance deposit account wagering, in which the patron establishes a deposit account with a licensee and directs the placement of wagers from that account via the internet; and historical horse racing, in which the patron wagers on the outcome of digitally recorded races previously held at licensed horse tracks. After a brief committee discussion, the committee heard testimony on the bill.

The following persons testified:

10:52 AM -- Mr. Mark Grueskin, Colorado Gaming Association, testified in opposition of the bill and argued that it would allow the creation of "racinos" that are in violation of the state constitution that limits casino-style gambling to three historic mountain towns. Mr. Grueskin noted that if money spills over to the General Fund, it is a tax and under House Bill 09-1152, the revenue is a new "tax" based on adjusted gross proceeds (the majority of the money flows through the General Fund). He continued by making the point that the method of taxing bets under the bill is different than the current pari-mutuel tax which is based on 0.75 percent of gross wagers. He closed by urging the committee to oppose the bill.

11:10 AM -- Mr. Rod Weidmann, Board of County Commissioners of Arapahoe County, testified in opposition toward the bill and distributed a letter of opposition toward the bill from Arapahoe County (Attachment A). He continued by noting that if this bill is approved, the citizens should be allowed to vote on the proposed use of these machines authorized by the bill. He closed by saying that the bill changes the use of racing facilities from live racetracks to a casino-type facility.

The committee discussed the location of schools in Arapahoe County that are close to the race track.

11:18 AM -- Mr. Ron Bockenfeld, Arapahoe County, testified in opposition toward the bill. The City Council opposes this bill because the bill expands gambling. If we are going to expand gambling, the people should vote on it. He closed by saying that the expansion of gambling is the basic reason for opposition toward the bill.

11:25 AM -- Mr. Louis Cella, Instant Racing, discussed horse racing trends currently in the United States. He provided several examples of where pari-mutuel racing has decreased. He stated that he sees this bill as a way to modernize racing and expand the fan base. He continued by describing how instant racing works and noted that it is already taking place in Colorado. He answered questions from the committee and distributed a packet of information on the pari-mutuel industry that included revenue graphs and a news article (Attachment B). He closed by saying that the industry is having a very hard time and this bill will help the industry.

11:50 AM -- Mr. Tony Gasich, Rocky Mountain Quarter Horse Association (RMQHA), testified in support of the measure and distributed a handout of economic statistics for the industry (Attachment C). He discussed the new jobs that would be created by the bill and the bill's potential to boost the state's economy. He noted that the bill affects over 55 percent of the gross proceeds in the industry and is a winner for everyone. He closed by saying that if this bill is not passed, 1,500 jobs will be lost to the state and the industry will lose $100 million. Other neighboring states around Colorado will benefit.

12:08 PM -- Mr. David Reitz, Colorado Division of Racing, testified in support of the bill and commented that the division will regulate this industry, not the lottery. He closed by saying that this new activity will be regulated by the state and without this bill, the industry will go away in Colorado.

12:10 PM


BILL:	HB09-1152
TIME:	12:10:46 PM
MOVED:	Apuan
MOTION:	Refer House Bill 09-1152 to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion failed on a 2-9 vote.
SECONDED:	Roberts
		VOTE
	Apuan	Yes
	Benefield	No
	Gerou	No
	Kefalas	No
	Kerr A.	No
	Lambert	No
	Roberts	Yes
	Summers	No
	Swalm	No
	Frangas	No
	Judd	No

Not Final YES: 2 NO: 9 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: FAIL


BILL:	HB09-1152
TIME:	12:19:05 PM
MOVED:	Frangas
MOTION:	Moved to postpone House Bill 09-1152 indefinitely. The motion passed on a 10-1 vote.
SECONDED:	Benefield
		VOTE
	Apuan	Yes
	Benefield	Yes
	Gerou	Yes
	Kefalas	Yes
	Kerr A.	Yes
	Lambert	Yes
	Roberts	No
	Summers	Yes
	Swalm	Yes
	Frangas	Yes
	Judd	Yes

Final YES: 10 NO: 1 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

12:19 PM

Recess.