From CHRB
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Apr. 19, 2025) — The California Horse Racing Board conducted a meeting Thursday, April 17, at Cal Expo. Chairman Gregory Ferraro chaired the meeting, joined by Vice Chair Oscar Gonzales and Commissioners Dennis Alfieri, Brenda Washington Davis, and Thomas Hudnut.
The audio of this entire Board meeting is available on the CHRB Website (www.chrb.ca.gov) under the Webcastlink, accessed through the Media Room tab. In brief:
- Two requests for date allocations in Northern California failed to pass, meaning that as things stand, there will not be any thoroughbred or fair racing in the north this year. There will be harness racing at Cal Expo.
A request for thoroughbred dates at the Alameda County Fairgrounds in Pleasanton was rejected outright by a 4-1 vote with Vice Chair Gonzales casting the only vote in support. (Commissioner Damascus Castellanos did not attend, and the Board has six appointed members, one short of the normal seven.)
Chairman Ferraro stated the prevailing opinion of the Board majority when he declared at the onset of the discussion that the CHRB has a fiduciary duty to ensure that a proposed meet has the financial ability and prospects to be successful, and the short time between now and the proposed start of the meet in June would not allow for an adequate review of the proposal. He cited the failed meet conducted by Golden State Racing (GSR) at the end of last year as reason to be especially cautious in this regard.
George Schmitt, a prominent horse owner and breeder based in Northern California, said that he and John Harris, another mainstay owner-breeder based in Fresno, would provide financial backing for the proposed meet, and he said they, too, have taken note of the problems experienced by GSR and are taking steps to avoid those problems.
The Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC) joined with Chairman Ferraro and others in stating that a more thorough review should be completed before considering a meet in Pleasanton.
The other request for dates was submitted by the Humboldt County Fair for a three-week fair meet in Ferndale from August 13 to September 2. This discussion focused almost entirely on whether the revenue for a meet in the far north of California might be more beneficial to improving racing in Southern California, with some arguing that supporting racing in the south would do the most good for the health of racing as a whole in California.
Those speaking on behalf of the Ferndale proposal cited the benefits of staging a fair meet that they believe would bring back owners, trainers, and horses displaced by the closure of Golden Gate Fields and GSR. Those opposing the proposal noted that many horses already have been relocated from the north to racing at Santa Anita and Los Alamitos, and their owners and trainers would be unlikely to support Ferndale.
Vice Chair Gonzales also voted for this request, and he was joined by Commissioner Davis. Chairman Ferraro and Commissioners Alfieri and Hudnut voted no. As a Board majority of four votes is necessary for any approval, the motion failed to pass in a 3-2 vote. This prompted Vice Chair Gonzales to encourage Humboldt to bring the matter back to the Board at the May 15meeting, noting that the vacant seat on the Board might be filled by then, and with the likely attendance of Commissioner Castellanos, there might be two additional votes to approve the fair meet.
- In his report to the Board, Executive Director Scott Chaney advised that total statewide handle in the month of March increased by 2 percent over the previous March when Golden Gate Fields was still running, evidence of how well the south has been doing so far this year.
“Next, I wish to congratulate Santa Anita Park which was named host venue for all of the equestrian events for the 2028 Summer Olympics by LA28 Olympic Organizing Committee earlier this week,” continued Chaney. “This is nice symmetry as the equestrian events during the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 were also held at Santa Anita Park. In the last year or so, Santa Anita has constructed jumping and dressage arenas in its infield, and hosted a major show jumping event last November. Commissioner Alfieri and I were able to attend and can attest to the fact that it was a world class event. Congratulations to Santa Anita.”
- Dr. Francisco Uzal, director of the Postmortem Program, gave a report focusing primarily on information obtained in fiscal-year 2023-2024. Since the CHRB put this program in place in 1990, the knowledge and information obtained have significantly helped reduce fatalities in California racing.
- The Board approved a regulatory amendment limiting the actions of assistant starters pertaining to manipulating a horse’s ear while on the track or entering the starting gate.
- The Board approved a regulatory amendment designed to better align CHRB practices with requirements of the Information Practices Act as they pertain to applications and rulings by the stewards.