SESSION WATCH
THE BILL ITSELF

CS/CS/HB 881

Pari-mutuel Wagering

VERSION H 881 c2 · BACK TO THE SUMMARY · OFFICIAL RECORD

underlined language is being added; struck language is being deleted. Line numbers are the Legislature's own — the same ones amendments cite.

1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to pari-mutuel wagering; amending s.
3 550.01215, F.S.; authorizing thoroughbred
4 permitholders to elect not to conduct live racing or
5 games; specifying that such permitholders retain
6 certain permits, eligibility, exemptions, and
7 licenses; providing that certain permitholders are
8 eligible to be a guest track; amending s. 550.09515,
9 F.S.; revising penalties for certain permitholders who
10 do not pay tax on handle for live races; removing
11 provisions requiring reissuance of escheated horse
12 permits; amending s. 550.5251, F.S.; conforming
13 provisions to changes made by the act; amending s.
14 551.104, F.S.; revising specified requirements for
15 thoroughbred permitholders who have certain slot
16 machine licenses; amending s. 849.086, F.S.; revising
17 requirements for certain permitholders who have
18 cardroom licenses; providing an effective date.
20 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
22 Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of section
23 550.01215, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
24 550.01215 License application; periods of operation;
25 license fees; bond.—
26 (1) Each permitholder shall annually, during the period
27 between January 15 and February 4, file in writing with the
28 commission its application for an operating license for a pari-
29 mutuel facility for the conduct of pari-mutuel wagering during
30 the next state fiscal year, including intertrack and simulcast
31 race wagering. Each application for live performances must
32 specify the number, dates, and starting times of all live
33 performances that the permitholder intends to conduct. It must
34 also specify which performances will be conducted as charity or
35 scholarship performances.
36 (b)1. A greyhound permitholder may not conduct live
37 racing. A jai alai permitholder, thoroughbred permitholder,
38 harness horse racing permitholder, or quarter horse racing
39 permitholder may elect not to conduct live racing or games. A
40 thoroughbred permitholder must conduct live racing. A greyhound
41 permitholder, jai alai permitholder, thoroughbred permitholder,
42 harness horse racing permitholder, or quarter horse racing
43 permitholder that does not conduct live racing or games retains
44 its permit; is a pari-mutuel facility as defined in s.
45 550.002(23); if such permitholder has been issued a slot machine
46 license, the facility where such permit is located remains an
47 eligible facility as defined in s. 551.102(4), continues to be
48 eligible for a slot machine license pursuant to s. 551.104(3),
49 and is exempt from s. 551.114(2) ss. 551.104(4)(c) and (10) and
50 551.114(2); is eligible, but not required, to be a guest track
51 and, if the permitholder is a harness horse racing permitholder,
52 to be a host track for purposes of intertrack wagering and
53 simulcasting pursuant to ss. 550.3551, 550.615, 550.625, and
54 550.6305; and remains eligible for a cardroom license.
55 2. A permitholder or licensee may not conduct live
56 greyhound racing or dogracing in connection with any wager for
57 money or any other thing of value in the state. The commission
58 may deny, suspend, or revoke any permit or license under this
59 chapter if a permitholder or licensee conducts live greyhound
60 racing or dogracing in violation of this subparagraph. In
61 addition to, or in lieu of, denial, suspension, or revocation of
62 such permit or license, the commission may impose a civil
63 penalty of up to $5,000 against the permitholder or licensee for
64 a violation of this subparagraph. All penalties imposed and
65 collected must be deposited with the Chief Financial Officer to
66 the credit of the General Revenue Fund.
67 Section 2. Subsection (3) of section 550.09515, Florida
68 Statutes, is amended to read:
69 550.09515 Thoroughbred horse taxes; abandoned interest in
70 a permit for nonpayment of taxes.—
71 (3)(a) The permit of a thoroughbred horse permitholder who
72 is conducting live thoroughbred horse performances and who does
73 not pay tax on handle for live thoroughbred horse performances
74 for a full schedule of live races during any 2 consecutive state
75 fiscal years shall be void and shall not be reissued escheat to
76 and become the property of the state unless such failure to
77 operate and pay tax on handle was the direct result of fire,
78 strike, war, or other disaster or event beyond the ability of
79 the permitholder to control. Financial hardship to the
80 permitholder shall not, in and of itself, constitute just cause
81 for failure to operate and pay tax on handle.
82 (b) In order to maximize the tax revenues to the state,
83 the commission shall reissue an escheated thoroughbred horse
84 permit to a qualified applicant pursuant to the provisions of
85 this chapter as for the issuance of an initial permit. However,
86 the provisions of this chapter relating to referendum
87 requirements for a pari-mutuel permit shall not apply to the
88 reissuance of an escheated thoroughbred horse permit. As
89 specified in the application and upon approval by the commission
90 of an application for the permit, the new permitholder shall be
91 authorized to operate a thoroughbred horse facility anywhere in
92 the same county in which the escheated permit was authorized to
93 be operated, notwithstanding the provisions of s. 550.054(2)
94 relating to mileage limitations.
95 Section 3. Subsection (1) and paragraph (a) of subsection
96 (2) of section 550.5251, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
97 550.5251 Florida thoroughbred racing; certain permits;
98 operating days.—
99 (1) If a thoroughbred permitholder elects to conduct live
100 racing, the Each thoroughbred permitholder shall annually,
101 during the period commencing January 15 of each year and ending
102 February 4 of the following year, file in writing with the
103 commission its application to conduct one or more thoroughbred
104 racing meetings during the thoroughbred racing season commencing
105 on the following July 1. Each application shall specify the
106 number and dates of all performances that the permitholder
107 intends to conduct during that thoroughbred racing season. On or
108 before April 15 of each year, the commission shall issue a
109 license authorizing each permitholder to conduct performances on
110 the dates specified in its application. Up to March 28 of each
111 year, each permitholder may request and shall be granted changes
112 in its application to conduct performances; but thereafter, as a
113 condition precedent to the validity of its license and its right
114 to retain its permit, each permitholder must operate the full
115 number of days authorized on each of the dates set forth in its
116 license.
117 (2)(a) Each licensed thoroughbred permitholder in this
118 state that elects to conduct live racing must run an average of
119 one race per racing day in which horses bred in this state and
120 duly registered with the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders'
121 Association have preference as entries over non-Florida-bred
122 horses, unless otherwise agreed to in writing by the
123 permitholder, the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' Association,
124 and the association representing a majority of the thoroughbred
125 racehorse owners and trainers at that location. All licensed
126 thoroughbred racetracks shall write the conditions for such
127 races in which Florida-bred horses are preferred so as to assure
128 that all Florida-bred horses available for racing at such tracks
129 are given full opportunity to run in the class of races for
130 which they are qualified. The opportunity of running must be
131 afforded to each class of horses in the proportion that the
132 number of horses in this class bears to the total number of
133 Florida-bred horses available. A track is not required to write
134 conditions for a race to accommodate a class of horses for which
135 a race would otherwise not be run at the track during its meet.
136 Section 4. Paragraph (c) of subsection (4) and subsection
137 (10) of section 551.104, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
138 551.104 License to conduct slot machine gaming.—
139 (4) As a condition of licensure and to maintain continued
140 authority for the conduct of slot machine gaming, the slot
141 machine licensee shall:
142 (c) If a thoroughbred permitholder, conduct no fewer than
143 a full schedule of live racing or games as defined in s.
144 550.002(10). A permitholder's responsibility to conduct live
145 races or games shall be reduced by the number of races or games
146 that could not be conducted due to the direct result of fire,
147 strike, war, hurricane, pandemic, or other disaster or event
148 beyond the control of the permitholder. Beginning July 1, 2025,
149 each thoroughbred permitholder in compliance with this chapter
150 is not required to pay an annual license fee to the commission
151 as a condition of renewal.
152 (10)(a)1. No slot machine license or renewal thereof shall
153 be issued to an applicant holding a permit under chapter 550 to
154 conduct pari-mutuel wagering meets of thoroughbred racing unless
155 the applicant has on file with the commission a binding written
156 agreement between the applicant and the Florida Horsemen's
157 Benevolent and Protective Association, Inc., governing the
158 payment of purses on live thoroughbred races conducted at the
159 licensee's pari-mutuel facility. In addition, no slot machine
160 license or renewal thereof shall be issued to such an applicant
161 unless the applicant has on file with the commission a binding
162 written agreement between the applicant and the Florida
163 Thoroughbred Breeders' Association, Inc., governing the payment
164 of breeders', stallion, and special racing awards on live
165 thoroughbred races conducted at the licensee's pari-mutuel
166 facility. The agreement governing purses and the agreement
167 governing awards may direct the payment of such purses and
168 awards from revenues generated by any wagering or gaming the
169 applicant is authorized to conduct under Florida law. All purses
170 and awards shall be subject to the terms of chapter 550. All
171 sums for breeders', stallion, and special racing awards shall be
172 remitted monthly to the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders'
173 Association, Inc., for the payment of awards subject to the
174 administrative fee authorized in s. 550.2625(3).
175 2. No slot machine license or renewal thereof shall be
176 issued to an applicant holding a permit under chapter 550 to
177 conduct pari-mutuel wagering meets of quarter horse racing
178 unless the applicant has on file with the commission a binding
179 written agreement between the applicant and the Florida Quarter
180 Horse Racing Association or the association representing a
181 majority of the horse owners and trainers at the applicant's
182 eligible facility, governing the payment of purses on live
183 quarter horse races conducted at the licensee's pari-mutuel
184 facility. The agreement governing purses may direct the payment
185 of such purses from revenues generated by any wagering or gaming
186 the applicant is authorized to conduct under Florida law. All
187 purses shall be subject to the terms of chapter 550.
188 (b) The commission shall suspend a slot machine license if
189 one or more of the agreements required under paragraph (a) are
190 terminated or otherwise cease to operate or if the commission
191 determines that the licensee is materially failing to comply
192 with the terms of such an agreement. Any such suspension shall
193 take place in accordance with chapter 120.
194 (c)1. If an agreement required under paragraph (a) cannot
195 be reached prior to the initial issuance of the slot machine
196 license, either party may request arbitration or, in the case of
197 a renewal, if an agreement required under paragraph (a) is not
198 in place 120 days prior to the scheduled expiration date of the
199 slot machine license, the applicant shall immediately ask the
200 American Arbitration Association to furnish a list of 11
201 arbitrators, each of whom shall have at least 5 years of
202 commercial arbitration experience and no financial interest in
203 or prior relationship with any of the parties or their
204 affiliated or related entities or principals. Each required
205 party to the agreement shall select a single arbitrator from the
206 list provided by the American Arbitration Association within 10
207 days of receipt, and the individuals so selected shall choose
208 one additional arbitrator from the list within the next 10 days.
209 2. If an agreement required under paragraph (a) is not in
210 place 60 days after the request under subparagraph 1. in the
211 case of an initial slot machine license or, in the case of a
212 renewal, 60 days prior to the scheduled expiration date of the
213 slot machine license, the matter shall be immediately submitted
214 to mandatory binding arbitration to resolve the disagreement
215 between the parties. The three arbitrators selected pursuant to
216 subparagraph 1. shall constitute the panel that shall arbitrate
217 the dispute between the parties pursuant to the American
218 Arbitration Association Commercial Arbitration Rules and chapter
219 682.
220 3. At the conclusion of the proceedings, which shall be no
221 later than 90 days after the request under subparagraph 1. in
222 the case of an initial slot machine license or, in the case of a
223 renewal, 30 days prior to the scheduled expiration date of the
224 slot machine license, the arbitration panel shall present to the
225 parties a proposed agreement that the majority of the panel
226 believes equitably balances the rights, interests, obligations,
227 and reasonable expectations of the parties. The parties shall
228 immediately enter into such agreement, which shall satisfy the
229 requirements of paragraph (a) and permit issuance of the pending
230 annual slot machine license or renewal. The agreement produced
231 by the arbitration panel under this subparagraph shall be
232 effective until the last day of the license or renewal period or
233 until the parties enter into a different agreement. Each party
234 shall pay its respective costs of arbitration and shall pay one-
235 half of the costs of the arbitration panel, unless the parties
236 otherwise agree. If the agreement produced by the arbitration
237 panel under this subparagraph remains in place 120 days prior to
238 the scheduled issuance of the next annual license renewal, then
239 the arbitration process established in this paragraph will begin
240 again.
241 4. In the event that neither of the agreements required
242 under subparagraph (a)1. or the agreement required under
243 subparagraph (a)2. are in place by the deadlines established in
244 this paragraph, arbitration regarding each agreement will
245 proceed independently, with separate lists of arbitrators,
246 arbitration panels, arbitration proceedings, and resulting
247 agreements.
248 5. With respect to the agreements required under paragraph
249 (a) governing the payment of purses, the arbitration and
250 resulting agreement called for under this paragraph shall be
251 limited to the payment of purses from slot machine revenues
252 only.
253 (d) If any provision of this subsection or its application
254 to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity
255 does not affect other provisions or applications of this
256 subsection or chapter which can be given effect without the
257 invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions
258 of this subsection are severable.
259 Section 5. Paragraph (c) of subsection (5) and paragraph
260 (d) of subsection (13) of section 849.086, Florida Statutes, are
261 amended to read:
262 849.086 Cardrooms authorized.—
263 (5) LICENSE REQUIRED; APPLICATION; FEES.—No person may
264 operate a cardroom in this state unless such person holds a
265 valid cardroom license issued pursuant to this section.
266 (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a pari-
267 mutuel permitholder, other than a permitholder issued a permit
268 pursuant to s. 550.3345 or a purchaser, transferee, or assignee
269 holding a valid permit for the conduct of pari-mutuel wagering
270 approved pursuant to s. 550.054(15)(a), may not be issued a
271 license for the operation of a cardroom if the permitholder did
272 not hold an operating license for the conduct of pari-mutuel
273 wagering for fiscal year 2020-2021. In order for an initial
274 cardroom license to be issued to a thoroughbred permitholder
275 issued a permit pursuant to s. 550.3345, the applicant must have
276 requested, as part of its pari-mutuel annual license
277 application, to conduct at least a full schedule of live racing.
278 In order for a cardroom license to be renewed by a thoroughbred
279 permitholder, the applicant must have requested, as part of its
280 pari-mutuel annual license application, to conduct at least 90
281 percent of the total number of live performances conducted by
282 such permitholder during either the state fiscal year in which
283 its initial cardroom license was issued or the state fiscal year
284 immediately prior thereto if the permitholder ran at least a
285 full schedule of live racing or games in the prior year.
286 (13) TAXES AND OTHER PAYMENTS.—
287 (d)1. Each jai alai permitholder that conducts live
288 performances and operates a cardroom facility shall use at least
289 4 percent of such permitholder's cardroom monthly gross receipts
290 to supplement jai alai prize money during the permitholder's
291 next ensuing pari-mutuel meet.
292 2. Each thoroughbred permitholder or harness horse racing
293 permitholder that conducts live performances and operates a
294 cardroom facility shall use at least 50 percent of such
295 permitholder's cardroom monthly net proceeds as follows: 47
296 percent to supplement purses and 3 percent to supplement
297 breeders' awards during the permitholder's next ensuing racing
298 meet.
299 2.3. No cardroom license or renewal thereof shall be
300 issued to an applicant holding a permit under chapter 550 to
301 conduct pari-mutuel wagering meets of quarter horse racing and
302 conducting live performances unless the applicant has on file
303 with the commission a binding written agreement between the
304 applicant and the Florida Quarter Horse Racing Association or
305 the association representing a majority of the horse owners and
306 trainers at the applicant's eligible facility, governing the
307 payment of purses on live quarter horse races conducted at the
308 licensee's pari-mutuel facility. The agreement governing purses
309 may direct the payment of such purses from revenues generated by
310 any wagering or gaming the applicant is authorized to conduct
311 under Florida law. All purses shall be subject to the terms of
312 chapter 550.
313 Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.