On Monday, Sept. 26, the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) announced that it is transferring oversight of cancellation fees to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG).

Effective Oct. 1, the AGCO is revoking Policy Directive No. 1-2009: Cancellation Fees and the OLG will oversee OLG Policy Directive 1-2022: Cancellation Fees.

The new cancellation fee policy can be viewed by clicking here.

This change aligns with OLG’s role in overseeing the overall economic regulation of the horse racing industry and came at the request of industry stakeholders.

Ontario Racing led a collaborative effort to update the cancellation fee policy, and the Ontario Racing Board of Directors approved a draft of the new policy and submitted it to the OLG and AGCO, who then worked together on the transfer of oversight.

Ontario Racing will now administer the cancellation fee policy, with the OR Board of Directors reviewing the amount of the cancellation fee biennially. The cancellation fee for 2022-2024 has been set at $451.

"I was appreciative of the cooperation between horsepeople, racetracks, OLG and the AGCO that resulted in a new policy with a 33 per cent increase in owner payouts, inclusion of payments to trainers and drivers for the first time, and a defined 24-hour cancellation window prior to scheduled racing,” said Ontario Racing Independent Chair John Hayes. “Cancellation fees are funded through each individual racetrack's purse account with the remaining funds for the cancelled dates retained for future purse payments,”

Ontario Racing would like to thank the AGCO, OLG and industry stakeholders for their collaborative input and cooperation in this transfer process.

For more information, please email [email protected].

(Ontario Racing)