Last week's Kentucky Derby drew a near-record crowd of 164,000 and was seen by another 15.3 million viewers on TV, and some sources estimate that Churchill Downs pulled in as much as $100 million in revenue throughout the course of the week.
The horse racing and breeding industry is a major economic boost for many states; accordingly, it's drawn its share of attention from legislators and regulators in Washington, D.C over the years. Ahead of the next two legs of the Triple Crown, NTUF took a look in the latest edition of The Taxpayer's Tab at some of the issues the industry faces and how Congress has proposed to deal with them.
Featured in this week's issue are bills from Congressman Andy Barr (R-KY) that would modify how horse sales affect owners' tax liabilities, which has also been discussed as part of the "tax extender" legislation that Congress has revisited frequently over the years. NTUF also looked into bills that address animal rights groups' concerns about how humanely commercial horses are treated, including the ways in which they're transported across the country and trained for competitions and exhibitions. There are also new versions of old proposals that seek to regulate the types of helmets riders must wear, and the extent to which the federal government is responsible for protecting wild horse populations.
More detail on all the equine legislation Congress is considering is available in The Taxpayer's Tab.