The Michigan Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association website reports that the additional funds demanded by the Michigan Gaming Control Board to continue regulation at Pinnacle Race Course have been paid.
The Gaming Control Board requested $57,000 by noon on Friday, or else it would not regulate the weekend’s races, effectively shutting the track down. The money was provided by the state’s HBPA and the Michigan Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association.
It was not stated whether the full amount was paid or if a deal was reached to pay in installments over the remainder of the meet.
In April, Michigan’s horsemen’s groups paid the Gaming Control Board over $170,000 from its overnight purse pool after the regulatory body announced it would only regulate two days of racing at Pinnacle without additional funding.
The per diem cost of regulation has steadily risen over the last year and a half. In 2009, the Gaming Control Board required $4,300 per day to operate. When it was announced in March that the board would only regulate two days without additional support, that figure rose to $5,923. The most recent figure to come from the Gaming Control Board stated it would actually require $7,000 per race day to regulate Thoroughbred racing.
In protest to Gaming Control Board’s latest invoice, the HBPA filed an emergency motion with the Wayne County Court to stop the regulatory body from halting the races. The motion was denied, but a hearing was scheduled for Sept. 21.
For a Detroit Free Press story outlining the situation, click here.
The Michigan-Bred Claimer 
I am speechless. I guess it’s a good thing I am not on HPBA or MTOBA boards. I wouldn’t have sent a check for $57K to the MGCB – I would have sent them an arrest warrant for extortion. Is there anyone in government in the state of Michigan who ISN’T a career criminal?
This is simply an outrage! I’am at the point I don’t want to give the state a stinking penny after this. While I understand the need to race, it’s at a tremendous cost and dangerous precedent. I can see why horseman are making the difficult decision to race elsewhere. What a Joke!