Illinois State Representative Thaddeus Jones has sponsored a bill in the State House that calls for the Balmoral Park and Maywood Park to remain open in hopes that a potential buyer can be sought in order for the tracks to be saved.

As an article by the Chicago Tribune explains, Jones wants a hearing to be held so the public can find out how the state’s racing board came to its decision to shift race dates over to Hawthorne Race Course.

Jones has been cited as saying that he believes the piece of legislation – H.B. 2663 – is a long shot, but that it will allocate a minimum of 30 days of racing in 2016 to any race track that was in good standing in 2015.

In regard to the decision to move the race dates, Jones said that "There was no public discussion about this, no consultation with state legislators, and we don't know exactly what information the racing board was acting on when it made its decision.

(With files from the Chicago Tribune)