In an attempt to reform the state’s gambling industry, Florida is working on several fronts towards clarifying and changing lots of the rules that govern betting in the Sunshine State. One area of attention is on pari-mutuel wagering: the betting that goes on at the state’s race tracks and frontons that are jai-alai hawaii. But industry insiders say that the very first draft of guidelines that have actually been proposed by state regulators simply will not work.

Workshop to Hammer Out Wagering Rules

Those rules will ultimately be discussed at a workshop with the Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering on October 16, but were first released in a draft form week that is last. The rules were created to eliminate a growing number of questionable methods that are clearly outside of what the state intends to allow at such venues. Even though a few of these new rules work, those into the industry say that numerous simply show that regulators aren’t familiar enough with Florida’s gambling industry to create such changes that are sweeping.

‘Some of those sound right,’ stated Ken Stirling, executive director of the Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association. ‘ Some of them haven’t been thought out really well. One or two are pretty silly.’

One of the big areas covered in the draft guidelines is horse racing regulations designed to eliminate non-standard racing. Many in the industry consent that this is a good clear idea, as ‘barrel racing’ and ‘flag-drop’ race are seen by some operators in an effort to cheaply earn payments that will even allow them to provide card spaces or slot machines alongside those races.

The latest rules would help put an end to practices that are such. They’d bar ‘the racing animal to improve course in reaction to any obstacles on the surface that is racing and ensure that jockeys conform to uniform and weight demands that willn’t be a problem for legitimate racing operations.

Disagreement Over Acceptable Race Lengths

But the laws don’t stop there, and this is where some feel that the rules go wrong. According to Stirling, some among these guidelines could devastate the race industry if they aren’t changed.

As an example, the regulations that are new need that most races have reached minimum six furlongs in total something that might make sense if you’ve only seen the Triple Crown races or the Breeder’s Cup, but making no sense for the industry in general.

‘[The guideline that] no competition must be faster than…six furlongs…is a killer,’ Stirling said, noting that such races would be too long for two-year-old horses rushing into the summer time. ‘That’s silly. We run child races at 4.5 furlongs and we’ve been doing it for a hundred years. I know they are in Tallahassee, but we have these things called phones.’

He avis the lucky nugget saloon also objected to a rule that states that every competition must have at the least six horses a guideline that may cause races to be canceled as a result of minute that is last.

Jai-Alai would additionally be affected by the regulations that are new. For instance, each place would be needed to possess eight players that are certified rotation. This rule comes in response to a controversy at Ocala Poker and Jai-Alai, which began the 2012 period with only two players.

While there may be difficulties with the rules, unit director Leon Biegalski says there shouldn’t be described as a nagging issue, and that the workshops are designed to help iron out these issues using the industry’s assistance.

‘They’re draft rules. They’re a point that is starting. You want to make sure that all of the permit holders and all the stake holders are on the page that is same terms of just what the regulation is that’s around and what should be out there,’ Biegalski said.