The Federal Trade Commission issued on December 12 an order rejecting the proposed Anti-Doping and Drug Control rule submitted by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority after a period of comment. public. The Equestrian Safety and Integrity Act, which created the HISA, includes a requirement that its rules be submitted for approval by the FTC.
The Commission’s order explains that its denial arises from legal uncertainty arising from a recent decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which declared the Safety and Integrity in Horse Racing is unconstitutional. Because further steps in the lawsuit could render the proposed rule unenforceable in the states that make up the circuit and in those states that are the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, approval of the proposed rule would be inconsistent with the Act’s fundamental principle that horse racing rules should be uniform across the state. ethnic. Accordingly, the committee failed to reach the merits of the proposed rule, which the Agency could resubmit if the legal uncertainty was resolved.
The Committee vote was 3-0-1, with Commissioner Christine S. Wilson abstaining.
“Everything HISA has implemented will remain as it is as of January 1, 2023. It has no impact on our race-safety program and that will continue to work as before. What it does. making it clear is delaying the implementation of the Anti-Doping and Drug Control program,” said HISA CEO Lisa Lazarus. “From HISA’s perspective, we’re ready, excited and eager to launch that program as it will be a game changer for the industry. But we understand that due to the environment we’re in and the challenges we face. Due to regulatory uncertainty, the FTC feels it is prudent to dismiss the rules and allow time for legal issues to be clarified and resolved.”
That uncertainty began on November 18 with a ruling by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court, which reversed the ruling of U.S. District Court Judge James Wesley Hendrix for the Northern District of Texas and declare HISA constitutional. The federal act is also being scrutinized by the Cincinnati-based 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which is considering an appeal against a ruling that HISA was constitutionally made in the U.S. District Court for Eastern District of Kentucky by Judge Joseph Hood. Oral debates were held on December 7.
Hood found that the HISA law gives the FTC sufficient “authority and oversight” over the Agency to ensure that the FTC operates as a private entity under the FTC and not vice versa in the construction process. Rule. Basically, Hendrix made the same kind of judgment as Hood. The fifth lap said Congress had won the chariot over the horse, making HISA an entity with a “whip handle”.
If the Sixth Circuit sided with Hood and if the Fifth Circuit does not change its position, the conflicting rulings would create a situation that would force the U.S. Supreme Court to fundamentally break the constraint.
Lazarus said either winning the right to suspend the Fifth Circuit Court ruling or the sixth round favorable ruling could also give HISA time to implement drug control and anti-doping rules.
Anti-Doping and Drug Control federal trade commission HE Purebred racing
