The Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP), Kentucky’s equine economic advocate, released the following statement today following the Senate’s passage of Senate Bill 120:

“Thank you to our representatives in the House for acting in Kentuckians’ best interests and passing critical legislation to keep historical horse racing in the commonwealth. This is great news for the 1,400 people employed directly by historical horse racing and the tens of thousands more who rely on the horse industry to provide for their families.

“The Supreme Court’s ruling on HHR last year brought major uncertainty to our employees, local businesses, communities and our industry as a whole. We applaud the General Assembly for acting swiftly to maintain the status quo of historical horse racing that the Kentucky has known for the last ten years. With the passage of SB 120, we are confident about the future of Kentucky racing and our ability to continue bringing new jobs and economic growth to our communities across the Commonwealth.

“Gov. Beshear has been vocal in his support of historical horse racing and its positive impacts on our state, and we look forward to seeing SB 120 signed into law.”

ABOUT KEEP
The Kentucky Equine Education Project, Kentucky’s equine economic advocate, is a not-for-profit grassroots organization created in 2004 to preserve, promote and protect Kentucky’s signature multi-breed horse industry. KEEP is committed to ensuring Kentucky remains the horse capital of the world, including educating Kentuckians and elected officials of the importance of the horse industry to the state. KEEP was the driving force in the establishment of the Kentucky Breeders Incentive Fund, which has paid out more than $177 million to Kentucky breeders since its inception in 2006, and pari-mutuel wagering on historical horse racing, which has been responsible for more than $50 million to purses and more than $24 million to the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund.

KEEP works to strengthen the horse economy in Kentucky through our statewide network of citizen advocates. To learn more about how you can become a member or support our work, please visit www.horseswork.com.