It has been reported that on Thursday (Feb. 20) the Kentucky Supreme Court ruled that the state racing commission can legally regulate wagering on ‘Historical Racing,’ also known as ‘Instant Racing.’ Although, the legality of the form of betting itself has yet to be established.
The Lexington Herald-Leader is reporting that the court also ruled that the case must return to the Franklin Circuit Court where it will be determined whether the operation of such betting “constitutes a pari-mutuel form of wagering."
The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission followed the court’s decision by issuing a statement in regard to the ruling. The KHRC statement appears below.
The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission has believed from the beginning, and the Kentucky Supreme Court has now found, the Commission has the legal authority to promulgate regulations for the operation of historical horse racing in Kentucky.
This is an important victory for the Commonwealth and the future of the horse industry in Kentucky.
Instant Racing allows punters to wager on races that have been previously conducted. The races are randomly selected from a database which contains more than 60,000 races. Identifying information regarding the races is not provided before the punter places his/her wager.
(With files from The Lexington Herald-Leader)