Legislature Approves Sen. Dodd’s Horse Racing Safety Bill

SACRAMENTO – Horse-racing safety legislation from Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa, that is prompted by deaths of horses at Santa Anita Park was approved by the Legislature today with unanimous support and heads to Gov. Gavin Newsom for a signature.

“We must take action now to protect horses and jockeys, ensuring safety is always paramount in California horse racing,” Sen. Dodd said. “Because clearly, there is a problem here, and we can’t sit back and do nothing. I appreciate my colleagues in the Legislature for coming together to pass this important safety measure, and I look forward to Gov. Newsom signing it into law.”

Senate Bill 469 would authorize the California Horse Racing Board to immediately halt racing at tracks where dangerous conditions exist. It comes in response to the growing number of horse deaths at Santa Anita. Since late December, 30 horses have died with the most recent death on Saturday.

Gov. Gavin Newsom previously announced he would support SB 469, which is co-authored by Adam Gray, D-Merced, Sen. Susan Rubio, D-Baldwin Park and Assemblymember Ed Chau, D-Arcadia. The bill received bipartisan support in both the Senate and the Assembly.

Sen. Dodd chairs the Senate Governmental Organization committee, which oversees horse racing among other things.

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Senator Bill Dodd represents California’s 3rd Senate District, which includes all or portions of Napa, Solano, Sonoma, Yolo, Sacramento, and Contra Costa counties. You can learn more about Senator Dodd at www.sen.ca.gov/dodd.