LINCOLN- Last weekend, the Nebraska horse racing season thundered from the starting gates, but most of the United States will not be able to watch or bet on the races. That's because Fonner Park, which runs a large majority of Nebraska's live races, decided not to simulcast its races to other states because it would have to comply with strict federal regulations.

Tom Sage, executive director of the Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission, said state regulators decided last year not to opt in to adopting the Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Act rules, a law introduced by Congress in 2020, statewide, allowing each individual racetrack to make that decision for themselves. Sage defended that approach by pointing to several flaws he found in the rules, including high costs. "Basically, they want the state commissions to enforce the federal law, but they want us to pay the enforcement costs," said Sage.

Sage went on to state that, if Fonner Park were to adopt the rules implemented by Congress, it would cost the organization around $250,000 a year, not including additional costs related to hiring additional staff to comply with the rules. Chris Kotulak, Fonner Park CEO, called the rules "unreasonable and overreaching."

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