Horse-racing suspension delayed as possible deal draws near

HARRISBURG - The Wolf administration will delay for a week suspending live horse-racing in Pennsylvania to give legislators time to consider a possible deal to keep the struggling industry viable, Democrats said Friday night.

After the latest in a series of meetings, a "framework in principle" was agreed to by legislative leaders and the administration, said House Democratic Leader Frank Dermody of Allegheny County and Rep. Mike Carroll of Lackawanna County, Democratic chair of the House Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee.

Lawmakers will be briefed next week with the goal of taking legislative action the following week, Dermody and Carroll said in a joint statement.

A deal is needed to keep the state's six racetracks open. Despite the sport's waning popularity, the $1.6 billion industry supports about 23,000 jobs in Pennsylvania. There are two tracks in the Philadelphia region: Parx, in Bensalem, and Harrah's, in Chester.

"Our goal is to provide a long-term, sustainable solution to the horse-racing industry's financial and other challenges in Pennsylvania," Dermody and Carroll said.

The sticking point had been the increasingly insolvent state racing fund, which pays for licensing, drug testing, and safety measures.

Though the fund was originally designed to be covered through a tax on betting revenues, in recent years the state has been forced to pitch in as the proceeds from wagers have dissipated.

This year, the shortfall was around $10 million, officials said.

But due to the state's budget impasse, officials were unable to transfer money into the fund. The Wolf administration used the occasion to press industry leaders to shoulder a greater proportion of the costs.

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Inquirer staff writer Robert Moran contributed to this article.