It's a piece of legislation not introduced yet, but that didn't stop two industry leaders from discussing at last week's racing symposium in Arizona a proposed immigration change that could alter the way the sport's workforce seeks employment here legally.
At the symposium, Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) CEO Lisa Lazarus reportedly discussed a plan to expand P Visas to include equine workers with a built-in funding mechanism for the organization, according to BloodHorse.
Currently, the backstretch workforce falls under the umbrella of the Fair Labor Standards Act, limiting them to H-2B visas only.
The H-2B visa program–which affords non-agriculture seasonal immigrant workers jobs in such industries as hospitality or with animals–has its limitations. It comes with a restrictive annual quota, and is typically only granted for a year, but it can be extended for up to three years.
The P Visa is broken into four categories geared toward individuals with specialized skills.
The P-1A is for athletes and sports teams (with an initial stay of up to five years). The P-1B is for skilled entertainers who form part of an entertainment troop. The P-2 is an artist and professional entertainer exchange program. The P-3 is for artists whose work is considered culturally unique. The last three categories come with an initial stay of a maximum one year.
TDN obtained a draft version of a piece of legislation that has been shared among industry leaders, its structure mirroring what morsels of information were shared last week. The important caveat is that this is not the final version of the bill to be introduced–if indeed it eventually is.
The draft P Visa legislation is geared toward equine workers who either care, feed, groom or train horses involved in equine sporting competitions, or who are involved in the breeding of horses that compete. The visa fee, as per this draft, is $1,500.
For those equine workers performing tasks that fall under HISA's auspices, 100% of these monies will go into a Federal Trade Commission (FTC)-managed fund to be used “for the awarding of grants to States in which the State racing commission elects to remit fees pursuant to section 1203(f)(2) of the Consolidated Appropriations Act.”
As to the monies collected for equine workers not covered under HISA, 50% would be used under the Department of Veterans Affairs Adaptive Sports Grant Program for disabled veterans and disabled members of the armed forces. The other 50% of the fees collected would go into an “Equine Aftercare Fund” for equine aftercare programs.
As drafted, this visa pathway wouldn't be available to the immigrant backstretch workforce already here.
A spokesperson for Kentucky representative Andy Barr–who National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) president Tom Rooney reportedly said provided the idea behind the legislation–described its progress as being in its formative stages.
“While we don't have legislation that Congressman Barr is endorsing or introducing yet, we are engaging with industry stakeholders, Congressional leadership, and the Administration to find the right path forward. President Trump and Congressman Barr have delivered great victories for the industry–including the enactment of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act and the 100% bonus depreciation provision of the Big Beautiful Bill that led to record yearling sales at Keeneland this year,” wrote Barr's communications director, Alex Bellizzi.
Neither the NTRA nor HISA shared more than what was detailed last week, though spokespersons for both expressed support for a P Visa expansion proposal.
“We know the industry needs more visas in general and needs more workers, so anything that does that we're in support of,” said NTRA communications director Thomas Meis.
“We are excited for the potential of the P Visa expansion. We have no further comment beyond what Lisa and Tom shared at Symposium. Happy to have a conversation when legislation is introduced,” wrote a HISA spokesperson.
Coady
If and when this legislation is introduced, it will surely face stiff political headwinds. It was all the way back in 1986 that major immigration reform was passed on Capitol Hill.
Added to that, Barr faces a contentious battle for the Kentucky senate seat soon to be vacated by Mitch McConnell. One of his rivals is trainer Dale Romans, who has made very clear that immigration reform is a backbone of his campaign.
Given how Washington continues to be riven by political dysfunction, is this the right time to be pushing important immigration reform for the industry?
“I believe that the timing might be ideal for an immigration program that has all of the requirements for both sides of the aisle,” said California Horse Racing Board vice chairman Oscar Gonzales, pointing to a climate characterized by an immigration crackdown that has targeted communities heavily reliant on immigrant labor, as well as the ongoing affordability problem.
“If the equine community can prove that a segment of the worker population can get some form of work permits–in this case the P Visas–then perhaps that could be a model for other industries,” Gonzales added.
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