Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association

A new, $1-million Florida Sire Racing Incentive Program for 2026--providing win incentives to owners and breeders of FSS-eligible 2-year-olds at Gulfstream Park and Tampa Bay Downs--has been announced by the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association. Each 2-year-old winner of a maiden special weight, allowance, allowance optional claiming or stakes race at either track during calendar year 2026 will earn a $25,000 racing incentive paid directly by the FTBOA--$20,000 to the winning owner and $5,000 to the breeder. The new program replaces the Florida Sire Stakes series for 2-year-olds. "The...

At 78 years of age, Dana Halvorson is looking to move out of Washington State and live permanently at his farm in Ocala, Florida. He leaves behind a decades-long, storied career in the bloodstock world in Washington. He also leaves behind a state breeding industry in free-fall. Between 2005 and 2025, the number of mares bred dropped 94%, from 1214 to 70. Only two major farms remain in the whole state. "The West Coast has just taken a beating," said Halvorson, president of the Washington Thoroughbred Breeders & Owners Association...

A Florida senator pre-filed Thoroughbred decoupling legislation Friday that contains similar language to a bill that got introduced pre-session in that state's House of Representatives 17 days ago. This latest move was expected, according to a Jan. 9 post by the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association (FTBOA) on the X social media platform. "The FTBOA built Florida's protective framework. A Senate companion is how these bills move, and we are prepared," said Lonny Powell, the FTBOA's chief executive officer, in the X post. Like HB 881 from Rep. Adam...

The Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association has entered into an exclusive partnership with Florida Coast Equipment which will make Kubota the exclusive tractor, mower, utility vehicle and construction equipment sponsor of the Florida Thoroughbred industry, starting in 2026. The Florida Coast Equipment name will now be prominently displayed throughout the FTBOA headquarters, events and communications, including an advertising package on FTBOA.com, Wire to Wire, and the The Florida Horse Farm and Services Directory.

The Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association will waive most registration fees for Florida-bred and Florida-sired foals of 2026, the organization announced in a release Wednesday. Continued from a policy for foals of 2025, this offer is available exclusively to FTBOA regular members whose names appear as the official breeder of record. "Florida's breeders have stayed the course through every challenge and the FTBOA will do the same," FTBOA CEO Lonny Powell said. "Extending no-fee foal registrations into 2026--paired with our recently announced export incentives for the same year--is FTBOA...

It's the trendline industry eggheads are tracking with dread: a foal crop that has dropped nearly 60% from 1990, with wave-sized ripple effects. The number of races in the country has fallen a comparable amount over the same period. Some estimates have put the number of shuttered racetracks at about 50 since 2000. Nor is the U.S. alone. Over in the United Kingdom, modeling by the Thoroughbred Breeders' Association projects the foal crop to fall by around 25% between just 2022 and 2026. A one-quarter drop in four years. Hardly...

The Florida Gaming Control Commission (FGCC) has approved an amended awards plan that fixes in-state breeder and stallion awards at 15% of gross purses, down from the 20% rate established in 2024, according to a release from the Florida Thorougbbred Breeders' and Owners' Association (FTBOA). The new rates are effective as of Sept. 1, 2025. The adjustment reflects industry funding streams legislation, the release said, but despite the cut, total awards in 2026 for Florida breeders are expected to remain level thanks to the launch of new Florida-Bred 'Export' Incentives....

After this past spring's failed attempt to get a controversial bill passed in the Florida legislature that would have stripped a 40-days-minimum live racing requirement from its casino licensure, the owners of Gulfstream Park have filed a lawsuit against the Florida Gaming Control Commission (FGCC), alleging that the 2021 statute that allowed all classes of pari-mutuel licensees except Thoroughbreds to "decouple" from live racing as a condition of operating slot machines is an "unconstitutional special law and violates the equal protection clause of the Florida Constitution." Daniel Wallach, a Florida-based...

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law Monday a budget package that includes a continuation to, and in certain ways a redistribution of, the incentives and promotions that lawmakers have funnelled towards the state racing and breeding industries in recent years. The budget includes the following details: $15 million to Gulfstream Park and $5 million to Tampa Bay Downs for purses "and for the maintenance and operation" of these facilities. This mirrors the amounts listed for such purposes in last year's budget. $6 million to Gulfstream Park and $1.5 million...

The Florida Legislature has concluded policy discussions for the 2025 Regular Legislative Session, effectively killing the proposed decoupling provisions of Senate Bill 408, House Bill 105, and House Bill 1467, all of which the Florida Senate declined to approve for final passage, the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' and Owners' Association said in a press release late on Friday. However, Florida law requires the legislature to pass a balanced state budget each year. To meet this constitutional requirement, the legislature has extended the session through June 6, but has limited the focus...

The Florida House of Representatives on Friday passed controversial Thoroughbred decoupling legislation by a 70-34 vote at 6:10 p.m. HB 167 is a wide-ranging gaming bill, but the only section of it that came up for debate during the Apr. 25 legislative session was the decoupling aspect. As passed by the House, the bill would remove a statutory requirement that Gulfstream Park and Tampa Bay Downs run a minimum number of live Thoroughbred races in order to operate the respective casino and card room at each venue. The language of...

Florida's controversial decoupling legislation took an ominous step forward Wednesday when a House subcommittee not only advanced a bill that would remove the requirement that Gulfstream Park run a minimum number of live Thoroughbred races in order to operate its casino, but also amended the bill to say similar terms would apply to cardroom gaming license-holders, too, meaning Tampa Bay Downs would also have the option to cease racing if the bill got signed into law. The House Industries & Professional Activities Subcommittee reported HB 105 as "favorable" by a...