Decoupling Bill Expectedly Passes FL House Committee

The Thoroughbred industry in Florida is again in for a fight after the Florida House of Representatives' Industries and Professional Activities Subcommittee approved House Bill 881—which aims to decouple Thoroughbred racing and gaming licenses—to proceed. The Jan. 14 vote went 10-5 with all Republicans present voting in favor of the bill and Democrats in opposition. Representatives Yvette Benarroch, a Republican; Richard Gentry, a Republican; and Leonard Spencer, a Democrat, were excused from the vote. Thoroughbred Racing Initiative senior adviser Damon Thayer, a former Kentucky state senator, said the result of the vote was expected after a similar bill passed the House floor in 2025. "We fully expect it to pass the House pretty soon, as a matter of fact," Thayer told BloodHorse Wednesday afternoon. "Just like last year, Gulfstream has the skids greased in the House of Representatives for the bill and our strategy will focus on the Senate. That's where we were able to defeat it last year. We hope to do that again in 2026." The bill still has to pass one more House committee before reaching the House floor, after which it would move on to the Senate. The Senate declined to approve decoupling bills last spring after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis opposed the bill while speaking at Ocala Breeders' Sales in April. READ: DeSantis' View on Decoupling Leaves Horsemen Hopeful "We have a strategy and it's focused on the Senate as well as the governor's office with Governor DeSantis," Thayer said of the TRI and other industry leaders. "We're encouraged that Florida's major industry stakeholders stand united on this issue," Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association CEO Lonny Powell said in a statement. "The bill has a long path ahead and we will continue making the case for Florida's Thoroughbred industry at every opportunity." WATCH: Thayer Gives an Update on Decoupling Issue during Jan. 12 BloodHorse Monday episode Lawmakers, Industry Stakeholders Debate Outcome of Bill The bill was presented on the House floor Wednesday by its sponsor, Rep. Adam Anderson, a Republican from Florida's 57th district who attempted to frame the bill as beneficial to the Thoroughbred industry. "We want all of our tracks to continue racing, and this provides a pathway that we can ensure that will happen," Anderson claimed. Anderson highlighted two key provisions to the bill in comparison with last year's failed bill. Those provisions include requiring tracks to provide a three-year notice of the decision to stop live racing to the Florida Gaming Control Commission. That notice cannot be given until July 1, 2027. Secondly, the bill creates the ability to transfer existing Thoroughbred race permits to different facilities within 50 miles, which Anderson said created "new flexibility and new possibilities for the racing community." "The bill supports the Thoroughbred community with clear visibility on its future, time to adjust to any potential changes, and robust flexibility on where the permit holders can operate while applying the core principles we value in the free state of Florida," Anderson said. The TRI and Florida Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association recently commissioned a feasibility study to help identify a path forward for Florida racing should Gulfstream Park indeed close. Speaking before the committee, Powell said that the changes to the bill do little to ensure a viable transition. "We can't do this forever in terms of opposing, opposing, and opposing without solutions," Powell told lawmakers. "We've publicly launched our efforts to do that, we've been working hard on it. This bill takes away all that. I know for the folks in Marion County (where Ocala is located), I know for us that heard you and want to work on a solution, this does not give us time. The notice period does not give us time." READ: TRI: Hialeah, Tampa, New Track Are Options for Florida Public commentors were also quick to point out that 2021 legislation which decoupled gaming with other forms of racing led to the destruction of the state's Standardbred and Quarter Horse industries. Thoroughbred racing had been excluded from that bill, leading to it remaining coupled. Nick de Meric of de Meric Stables and Sales referenced Pompano Park, a premier Standardbred venue that closed in 2022 shortly after its gaming was decoupled, effectively ending Florida's Standardbred industry. "The precedent clearly shows what happens when a racetrack is decoupled from purse supplements generated from other sources. It disappears," de Meric said. "A century-old racing circuit with Florida as its iconic winter home could disappear without a trace just as easily." Rep. Angela Nixon, a Democrat from Florida's 13th district, also expressed concern about not allowing for the public to be able to vote on the decoupling issue given the addition of slot machines at racetracks were approved by a public vote in 2005. "I believe in honoring contracts, especially contracts with voters," Nixon said in her reasoning to oppose the bill. "The casinos wouldn't have even been established if not for the races and the Thoroughbred owners. It doesn't make sense that now they can be pushed out of the deal." As to why decoupling was not being put to a public vote, Anderson said, "This referendum process can be very lengthy, very expensive, and we want to provide a more streamlined pathway. … The voters in South Florida voted to allow machines. The legislature then set the parameters afterward. I'll also add in 2021, the legislature voted to undo those parameters and decouple all other permit holders in the state except for this particular category of Thoroughbred holders." Ocala Stud's David O'Farrell and OBS president Tom Ventura both argued that it was the horsemen's support that allowed alternative gaming at racetracks "Twenty years ago, the horsemen agreed to allow Gulfstream Park to have a casino on its property as long as it continued live racing with a portion of the casino revenue to supplement purses," O'Farrell said. "Now, they want to back out of that agreement with complete disregard for our long-term viability beyond the four short years that are proposed in this bill." Ventura referenced Chapter 550, Section 2625 of Florida Statutes that states the importance of purse structure and breeder awards to the health of the state's Thoroughbred industry. "This is why Thoroughbred tracks in Florida have been statutorily required for decades to pay a portion of gambling proceeds from slots and poker to enhance purses and breeder awards," Ventura said. "The legislators have consistently and historically recognized the importance of Thoroughbred racing and breeding, and by creating statutory framework that protects and promotes the Florida Thoroughbred industry and its profound impact on the state economy and preservation of green space." Two Republican representatives, Susan Valdes of District 64 and Brad Yeager of District 56, voiced their support of decoupling when comparing it to the 2021 decoupling of gaming from non-Thoroughbred racing. "Because of our compact in 2021, there's an industry that is being treated differently than others," Valdes said. "The way I'm looking at this bill is, while we're still supporting Thoroughbreds that they want to continue to race, by the same token a previous rule should not hold an industry hostage when others are not." "As we talk about this industry and the dollars it brings in, I don't think this bill affects that," Yeager said. "It allows them to still grow and keep going and build their industry even more. I don't understand how this bill deteriorates those numbers that financially impact the state." Powell told the committee that the leadership of all horsemen's organizations within the state met Jan. 12 and unanimously opposed the bill. "Though it may be said this does good for the Thoroughbred industry, what that means as presented so far, is good for the Thoroughbred racetracks," Powell said. "As far as the horse people, it's not good. We oppose it. "Anybody asking, 'Can the tracks just stop under this?' Absolutely. And the revenue share that used to go to the horse people gets kept by the racetracks. It's a convenient expense to save." Rep. Yvonne Hinson, a Democrat representing Marion County's District 21, spoke adamantly against the bill while stating it would eliminate more than 33,500 jobs from an industry that contributes more than $3.24 billion to the state's economy. "Decoupling is a multimillion-dollar threat to Florida's world-renowned Thoroughbred legacy," Hinson said. "This bill will deal a devastating economic blow to the state by authorizing Thoroughbred pari-mutuel permit holders to go back on a decades-long agreement and decouple from Thoroughbred horse races, allowing them to operate a stand-alone slot machine." Steve Koch, FTBOA's administrative vice president, warned the committee that the constant deliberation over decoupling is already beginning to harm the industry. "Uncertainty, as provided in this bill, throttles production," Koch said. "When breeders face existential legislation year after year, long-term capital investment will become irrational. This bill does not respond to an industry in decline, it actually manufactures that decline."