The USTA has gone out of their way to make their members believe that the introduction of the Racehorse Health and Safety Act (RHSA) has the slightest chance to be enacted into law. I have a better chance of walking on the moon than this piece of legislation has of being enacted into law.

It is obvious to me that the USTA is quite happy with the current arrangement where the states regulate the sport and everyone who wants to use drugs can do so. If we don’t clean this up we are going to lose the subsidy as no politician is going to want to be associated with taking money from slots that could go to education or other uses and giving it to purses for standardbred racing.

Our industry has to make it clear that we want to clean it up and we are willing to opt into HISA provided they make the changes we need because of the difference in our breed. While I am sure everyone is grateful that I have stepped up and kept The Meadowlands open, unfortunately I am also very honest, and I am not going to tolerate drugs in our sport at my racetracks. The fact that the USTA is making it sound like this is actually going to happen is a disgrace. We better be prepared, once they find out how bad the drug problem is, to change our stance on HISA and let them take over so at least we have a chance of cleaning it up. It cost me personally $2.5 million to put 30 people in prison, but now it’s time for the industry to pick up those costs as I have done my part.

Jeff Gural / owner The Meadowlands, Tioga and Vernon Downs