September 21, 2023 (Lexington, KY) – The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) has submitted proposed rule changes to its Racetrack Safety Program to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for review. A red-lined document noting these proposed changes is available here. The FTC will subsequently post the proposed rules to the public register for public comment.

Until changes to the rules are approved by the FTC, the previously approved version of HISA’s Racetrack Safety rules, which took effect July 1, 2022, will remain in place. Those rules are available in full on HISA’s Regulations Page.

HISA’s proposed changes to the Racetrack Safety rules were developed after months of dialogue with and feedback from racing participants across the country, including HISA’s Horsemen’s Advisory Group. During this time, the proposed rules were shared with industry members for two rounds of informal comments and published on HISA’s website for additional industry input. All in, HISA’s Racetrack Safety Committee received, reviewed and considered more than 600 comments from racing participants. The proposed changes submitted to the FTC today were reviewed and approved by HISA’s Racetrack Safety Committee and full Board of Directors.

When and if these rule changes are approved by the FTC, HISA will undertake robust educational efforts to ensure horsemen nationwide are fully aware of these changes and well-equipped to comply with them before they go into effect.