Greyhound hearing concludes

Vehemently denying charges that greyhound racing is cruel, abusive and inhumane, representatives of NH racetracks, echoed by officials of the New Hampshire Pari-Mutuel Commission, told the House Executive Departments and Administration Committee yesterday that outlawing dog racing would put 500 people out of work, cripple local economies and shrink state revenues.

The committee concluded its hearing on House Bill 923, which was recessed earlier in the week, before another packed house. After taking three hours of testimony from some 20 speakers, Representative Anne-Marie Irwin (D-Peterborough), who as chair of the committee presided with both a velvet glove and mailed fist, remarked on the "emotional, heartfelt debate" and assured those present that "we have listened carefully."

The bill would shut down the three dog tracks — the Lodge at Belmont, Hinsdale Greyhound Park and Seabrook Greyhound Park — by forbidding live racing, 50 calendar days a year of which are required in order to offer wagering on thoroughbred, harness and greyhound races simulcast from other tracks around the country. Simulcast wagering represents upwards of 90-percent of all the money bet at the three tracks.

The crux of the bill reads: "No person shall confine, keep or transport any dog with the intent that its shall be engaged or used in commercial dog racing in the state, or shall establish or promote a commercial dog race meet in the state." It continues to define "commercial dog racing" as "competitions based on the speed or agility of dogs where gambling occurs."

Representative Fran Wendelboe (R-New Hampton) opened the hearing by offering an amendment that would put an end to greyhound racing, but permit the racetracks to continue to offer simulcast wagering, effectively converting the tracks into off-track betting parlors, or OTBs.

Although her proposal went unchallenged, both track operators and regulatory officials have dismissed similar suggestions in the past on the grounds that it would require an overhaul of the regulatory structure. Joe Sullivan, who owns and operates Hinsdale Greyhound Park, said that the constant presence of regulatory personnel required to ensure the integrity of live racing serves as a safeguard against the kind of abuses that led to the closure of Lakes Region Greyhound Park, which with a minimal live racing program operated much like an OTB.

Paul LaFlamme, a former representative from Nashua and now a director of Grey2KUSA, the Massachusetts group supporting the bill, repeated the charges that track operators and kennel owners abused greyhounds that dominated the earlier session of the hearing. As the sponsor of the bill enacted in 2004 requiring tracks to report all injuries suffered by dogs, he dwelt on the 716 injuries reported in 2005 and 2006 and the conditions in which greyhounds are kenneled.

However, Representative Hector Velez (D-Manchester) was more interested in the relationship between Grey2KUSA and gambling interests in other states. He asked LaFlamme about reports that casinos, eager to stifle competition from other gambling venues, contributed to Grey2KUSA , adding "I'm looking for a straight up answer." "I can say with almost complete certainty that during my time on the board that it is not true," LaFlamme replied. "This is not about gambling."

Several speakers said that closer regulation of racing would not improve conditions at the tracks because their flagging fortunes left them without the resources to properly care for the dogs. Michael Trombly, former deputy director of the P-MC, said "the industry cannot afford to adequately care for the dogs and the satte cannot afford to enforce more regulation."

Robert White, who has inspected tracks for the New Hampshire Pari-Mutuel Commission (P-MC) for 17 years, flatly denied allegations of cruel and inhumane treatment. "The dogs are taken care of very well," he insisted. "There is no truth to it, none." Like many others, he described the dogs as "athletes," saying they were not confined for long periods but regularly turned out for exercise and play and well-fed, with a special diet rich in carbohydrates and protein.

Fred Fulchino, the New England representative of the National Greyhound Association, which serves the racing industry, reminded the committee that all parties to the debate agreed that adopted greyhounds are wonderful pets and asked "if these dogs were abused for four years, how could they become such good and healthy pets?"

Rory Goree, president of Greyhound Pets of America, which he said has brokered the adoption of 75,000 retired racers, described HB 923 as "an atomic bomb that could kill these dogs," prompting Irwin to caution "we're not going to inflame the crowd." When Goree continued, she snapped "don't push me." He continued to explain that the closure of the tracks would displace thousands of dogs that would overwhelm the non-profit adoption agencies.

Attorney Peter Marsh, who has authored animal cruelty legislation in the past, turned the discussion to the fiscal impact of dog racing. He claimed that the state revenue from live greyhound racing had fallen by 90 percent during the past 15 years to a meager $115,000 in 2006. On the other hand, he said that the state contributed $192,000 in proceeds from the New Hampshire Lottery, which is earmarked for education, to the advertising budgets of the racetracks, spent another $458,300 for drug testing the dogs and estimated the cost of regulating racing at $718,000. "Should we spend $1.3 million to get $115,000 in revenue? Should we spend $1.3 million to subsidize any industry, especially gambling?" he asked.

These calculations were countered by Curtis Barry, a lobbyist representing Hinsdale Greyhound Park, who reminded the committee that Marsh overlooked the fact that the tracks paid the rooms and meals tax, business taxes, and state property taxes as well as the pari-mutuel tax. Altogether the three tracks paid $2.4 million to the state in 2006, a year in which the Lodge at Belmont operated for only six months. Moreover, Barry explained that the tracks paid another $574,147 in local licensing fees and property taxes. Finally, he said that the tracks employed 490 full and part-time workers with an annual payroll of $5.5 million. The impact of the tracks on the local and regional economies, Barry said, was amplified by the multiplier effect of the money spent with vendors and by employees.

Barry said Marsh neglected to acknowledge that the Legislature withdrew the advertising subsidy last year and would likely adjust the testing costs this year as well as that the tracks paid the costs of regulation by the P-MC.

"To put over 500 people out of work and affect three communities in the state as severely as this legislation would based on twisted facts is wrong," he declared.

Dan Callaghan, a Manchester attorney representing Yankee Greyhound Park of Seabrook, told the committee that the Legislature authorized wagering at the four racetracks — the three greyhound tracks and Rockingham Park — through 2029 by statute (RSA 284:22). He said that the statute represented a contract, which according to the state and federal constitutions cannot be impaired by the state. If HB 923 were to succeed, Callaghan ventured that the racetrack owners would have grounds for litigation.

The committee is slated to act on the bill when it meets again on Tuesday.