I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5693 

To protect the health and welfare of covered horses and improve the integrity 

and safety of horseracing by authorizing States to enter into an interstate 

compact to develop and enforce scientific medication control rules and 

racetrack safety rules that are uniform for each equine breed, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 26, 2023 

Mr. HIGGINS of Louisiana introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To protect the health and welfare of covered horses and 

improve the integrity and safety of horseracing by authorizing States to enter into an interstate compact to 

develop and enforce scientific medication control rules 

and racetrack safety rules that are uniform for each 

equine breed, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Racehorse Health and Safety Act of 2023’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

Sec. 3. Repeal of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020. 

Sec. 4. Authorization to enter into interstate compact. 

TITLE I—RACEHORSE HEALTH AND SAFETY ORGANIZATION 

Sec. 101. Racehorse Health and Safety Organization. 

Sec. 102. Role of States and State racing commissions. 

TITLE II—HORSERACING SCIENTIFIC MEDICATION CONTROL 

Sec. 201. Scientific medication control committees. 

Sec. 202. Horseracing scientific medication control rules. 

TITLE III—RACETRACK SAFETY 

Sec. 301. Definition of Committee. 

Sec. 302. Racetrack Safety Committee. 

Sec. 303. Racetrack safety rules. 

TITLE IV—RULE VIOLATIONS 

Sec. 401. Prohibited acts. 

Sec. 402. Results management and disciplinary process. 

Sec. 403. Administrative sanctions. 

TITLE V—GENERAL PROVISIONS 

Sec. 501. Effective dates. 

3 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act: 

5 (1) ADVANCE DEPOSIT WAGER.—The term ‘‘ad6 vance deposit wager’’ means a legal form of pari7 mutuel wager in which an individual deposits money 

8 into an account and such funds are used to pay for 

9 parimutuel wagers made either on-track or off-track. 

10 (2) BOARD.—The term ‘‘Board’’ means the 

11 board of directors of the Racehorse Health and Safe12 ty Organization established under section 101. 


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1 (3) BREED REGISTRY.—The term ‘‘breed reg2 istry’’— 

3 (A) means the organization with which an 

4 owner or breeder officially registers his or her 

5 horse for horseracing; and 

6 (B) includes— 

7 (i) in the case of Thoroughbreds, the 

8 Jockey Club; 

9 (ii) in the case of Standardbreds, the 

10 United States Trotting Association; and 

11 (iii) in the case of Quarter Horses, 

12 the American Quarter Horse Association. 

13 (4) COVERED HORSE.—The term ‘‘covered 

14 horse’’ means any Thoroughbred, Standardbred, or 

15 Quarter Horse during the period— 

16 (A) beginning on the date of the horse’s 

17 first timed and reported workout at a racetrack 

18 that participates in covered horseraces or at a 

19 training facility; and 

20 (B) ending on the earlier of— 

21 (i) the date on which the horse is per22 manently ineligible to be entered in a cov23 ered horserace; or 

24 (ii) the date of the death of the horse. 


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1 (5) COVERED HORSERACE.—The term ‘‘covered 

2 horserace’’ means any horserace involving covered 

3 horses that has a substantial relation to interstate 

4 commerce, including any horserace that is the sub5 ject of interstate off-track wagers or advance deposit 

6 wagers. 

7 (6) COVERED PERSON.—The term ‘‘covered 

8 person’’ means any trainer, owner, breeder, jockey, 

9 driver, racetrack, veterinarian, person (as defined in 

10 section 1, of title 1, United States Code) licensed by 

11 a State racing commission, any agent, assign, or em12 ployee of such a person, and any other horse support 

13 personnel engaged in the care, training, or racing of 

14 covered horses. 

15 (7) EQUINE INDUSTRY REPRESENTATIVE.—The 

16 term ‘‘equine industry representative’’ means an or17 ganization representing the interests of, and whose 

18 membership consists in whole or in part of, owners, 

19 breeders, trainers, racetracks, veterinarians, State 

20 racing commissions, jockeys, and drivers. 

21 (8) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER.—The term 

22 ‘‘immediate family member’’ includes a spouse, do23 mestic partner, mother, father, aunt, uncle, sibling, 

24 child, or member of the same household. 


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1 (9) INTERSTATE COMPACT.—The term ‘‘inter2 state compact’’ means the interstate compact en3 tered into pursuant to this Act. 

4 (10) INTERSTATE OFF-TRACK WAGER.—The 

5 term ‘‘interstate off-track wager’’ has the meaning 

6 given such term in section 3 of the Interstate Horse7 racing Act of 1978 (15 U.S.C. 3002). 

8 (11) JOCKEY; DRIVER.—The terms ‘‘jockey’’ 

9 and ‘‘driver’’ mean an individual who is a rider or 

10 driver of a covered horse in a covered horserace. 

11 (12) MEMBER STATE.—The term ‘‘member 

12 State’’ means a State that is a member of the inter13 state compact. 

14 (13) OWNER; BREEDER.—The terms ‘‘owner’’ 

15 and ‘‘breeder’’ mean an individual who— 

16 (A) holds an ownership interest in a cov17 ered horse; or 

18 (B) is in the business of breeding covered 

19 horses. 

20 (14) RACETRACK.—The term ‘‘racetrack’’ 

21 means an organization or person licensed by a State 

22 racing commission to conduct covered horseraces. 

23 (15) RHSO.—The term ‘‘RHSO’’ means the 

24 Racehorse Health and Safety Organization estab25 lished under section 101. 


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1 (16) SCIENTIFIC MEDICATION CONTROL COM2 MITTEE.—The term ‘‘scientific medication control 

3 committee’’ means a committee established under 

4 section 201. 

5 (17) STATE RACING COMMISSION.—The term 

6 ‘‘State racing commission’’ means an entity des7 ignated by State law or regulation that has jurisdic8 tion over the conduct of horseracing within the ap9 plicable State. 

10 (18) TRAINER.—The term ‘‘trainer’’ means an 

11 individual that is engaged in the training of covered 

12 horses and is the recipient of direct or indirect com13 pensation or anything of value for such services or 

14 expertise. 

15 (19) TRAINING FACILITY.—The term ‘‘training 

16 facility’’ means a location that— 

17 (A) is not a racetrack recognized and des18 ignated by the Racehorse Health and Safety 

19 Organization; and 

20 (B) operates primarily to house covered 

21 horses or to conduct official timed workouts or 

22 qualifying races. 

23 (20) VETERINARIAN.—The term ‘‘veterinarian’’ 

24 means a licensed veterinarian who provides veteri25 nary services to covered horses. 


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1 (21) WORKOUT.—The term ‘‘workout’’ 

2 means— 

3 (A) a timed running of a horse over a pre4 determined distance not associated with a purse 

5 race; or 

6 (B) the competing of a horse in a harness 

7 qualifying race. 

8 SEC. 3. REPEAL OF THE HORSERACING INTEGRITY AND 

9 SAFETY ACT OF 2020. 

10 The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020 

11 (15 U.S.C. 3051 et seq.) is repealed. 

12 SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION TO ENTER INTO INTERSTATE COM13 PACT. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—The consent of Congress is given 

15 for States to enter into an interstate compact in accord16 ance with this Act. 

17 (b) CONSENT OF STATES.—A State may demonstrate 

18 consent to enter into the interstate compact through the 

19 enactment of a State law that contains a provision indi20 cating such consent that is substantially similar to the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘The State of lllllllll hereby consents to 

23 and enters into the interstate compact established in ac24 cordance with the Racehorse Health and Safety Act of 

25 2023.’’. 


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1 (c) PROHIBITION ON INTERSTATE OFF-TRACK WA2 GERS AMONG NON-MEMBER STATES.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to, and in accord4 ance with, the Interstate Horseracing Act of 1978 

5 (15 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.), a host State that is a 

6 member State of the interstate compact may allow 

7 the interstate transmission of any electronic signal 

8 for the purposes of allowing for the placement of 

9 interstate off-track wagers or advance deposit wa10 gers pertaining to the covered horserace concerned. 

11 (2) EXCEPTION.—A host State that is not a 

12 member State of the interstate compact is prohibited 

13 from allowing interstate transmission of any elec14 tronic signal for the purposes described in paragraph 

15 (1). 

16 (3) HOST STATE DEFINED.—In this subsection, 

17 the term ‘‘host State’’ means a State in which a 

18 horserace subject to an interstate wager takes place. 

19 TITLE I—RACEHORSE HEALTH 

20 AND SAFETY ORGANIZATION 

21 SEC. 101. RACEHORSE HEALTH AND SAFETY ORGANIZA22 TION. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—States that are members of the 

24 interstate compact shall— 


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1 (1) establish and participate in an organization, 

2 to be known as the ‘‘Racehorse Health and Safety 

3 Organization’’ or the ‘‘RHSO’’, to coordinate the de4 cision making and actions of the State racing com5 mission of each member State; and 

6 (2) develop bylaws and rules governing the 

7 RHSO, including rules establishing the RHSO as an 

8 agency for purposes of subchapter II of chapter 5 of 

9 title 5, United States Code. 

10 (b) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The RHSO shall be gov12 erned by a board of directors composed of 9 mem13 bers, of whom— 

14 (A) 5 shall be appointed by the State rac15 ing commission of each of the 5 member States 

16 that had the greatest number of racing days 

17 during the preceding 3-year period, with each 

18 such State racing commission appointing 1 

19 member; and 

20 (B) 4 shall be appointed by the State rac21 ing commissions of the remaining member 

22 States. 

23 (2) MEMBERSHIP.— 


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1 (A) CHAIRPERSON.—The chairperson of 

2 the Board shall be elected annually by majority 

3 vote from among the members of the Board. 

4 (B) TERM.— 

5 (i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 

6 in clauses (ii) and (iii), the term of a mem7 ber of the Board shall not exceed 3 years. 

8 No member shall serve more than 3 full 

9 terms. 

10 (ii) INITIAL APPOINTMENT.—For pur11 poses of staggering terms of appointment, 

12 the initial members appointed by the State 

13 racing commissions in the 5 member 

14 States that had the greatest number of 

15 racing days during the prior 3-year period 

16 shall serve an initial term of 4 years. 

17 (iii) EXPANSION IN CASE OF FEWER

18 THAN 9 MEMBER STATES.—If, as of the 

19 date described in section 502(a), fewer 

20 than 9 States have entered the interstate 

21 compact, the Board shall add a new mem22 ber as each new State enters the interstate 

23 compact, up to a maximum of 9 members. 

24 (iv) VACANCIES.—A vacancy on the 

25 Board shall be filled in the same manner 


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1 as the position was appointed immediately 

2 prior to the vacancy. An individual ap3 pointed to fill a vacancy occurring before 

4 the expiration of the term for which the 

5 predecessor of that individual was ap6 pointed shall be appointed for the remain7 der of that term. When the term of office 

8 of a member ends, the member may con9 tinue to serve until a successor is ap10 pointed. 

11 (C) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.— 

12 (i) IN GENERAL.—Each member of 

13 the Board shall— 

14 (I) before accepting appointment 

15 as a Board member, disclose any po16 tential conflict of interest; 

17 (II) notify the full Board imme18 diately upon engaging in any activity 

19 that the RHSO determines may be 

20 perceived as a conflict of interest; and 

21 (III) not less frequently than an22 nually, certify in writing the informa23 tion referred to in subclauses (I) and 

24 (II) and disclose any potential or per25 ceived conflicts of interest. 


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1 (ii) RECUSAL REQUIRED.—A member 

2 of the Board shall recuse himself or herself 

3 from discussion of any item before the 

4 Board if such discussion— 

5 (I) relates to the direct financial 

6 interest of the member of the Board 

7 or an immediate family member of the 

8 member of the Board; and 

9 (II) does not apply to all covered 

10 horses within a breed. 

11 (D) REMOVAL AND ETHICS.—The Board 

12 may remove by majority vote a member of the 

13 Board or the chairperson of the Board for— 

14 (i) neglect of duty, unethical behavior, 

15 or malfeasance in office (including conduct 

16 determined by the Board to be injurious to 

17 the integrity of horseracing, such as con18 tract violations or perjury); or 

19 (ii) conviction of a violation of a Fed20 eral or State civil or criminal law related 

21 to horseracing. 

22 (E) QUORUM.—In order to consider at a 

23 meeting any item requiring the approval of the 

24 Board, the Board shall have in attendance at 


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1 such a meeting (either in person or remotely) a 

2 majority of members of the Board. 

3 (c) DUTIES OF THE BOARD.—The duties of Board 

4 shall be— 

5 (1)(A) to adopt rules with respect to scientific 

6 medication control recommended by each scientific 

7 medication control committee under section 202; or 

8 (B) to modify, or not adopt rules so rec9 ommended or adopt alternative rules if the Board 

10 determines, by a preponderance of evidence, that 

11 such recommendations do not meet the requirements 

12 specified in paragraph (4); 

13 (2)(A) to adopt rules with respect to racetrack 

14 safety recommended by the Racetrack Safety Com15 mittee under section 303; or 

16 (B) to modify, or not adopt rules so rec17 ommended or adopt alternative rules if the Board 

18 determines, by a preponderance of evidence, that 

19 such recommendations do not meet the requirements 

20 specified in paragraph (4); 

21 (3) to adopt rules with respect to rule viola22 tions, as described in sections 401, 402, and 403; 

23 (4) to ensure that any rule adopted under para24 graph (1), (2), or (3) is based on generally accepted 


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1 scientific principles and methods, and to the extent 

2 possible, on peer-reviewed scientific data and studies; 

3 (5) to hold open meetings with respect to pro4 posed rules recommended under sections 202 and 

5 303, at which the chairperson of the scientific medi6 cation control committee concerned or the chair7 person of the Racetrack Safety Committee, as appli8 cable, or the representative of such chairperson, 

9 shall present such proposed rules; 

10 (6) not later than 45 days before any such 

11 meeting is to be held— 

12 (A) to post on the internet website of the 

13 RHSO any proposed rule described in para14 graph (1) or (2) (or modifications to such rules) 

15 under consideration at such meeting; and 

16 (B) to submit to each State racing com17 mission (and to any other individual upon re18 quest) notification of such meeting; 

19 (7) to adopt any rule under paragraphs (1), 

20 (2), and (3) by a vote of not less than a two-thirds 

21 majority of the Board, determine the effective date 

22 of any such rule, and update any such rule in ac23 cordance with the process established under para24 graphs (5) and (6); 


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1 (8) after notice and an opportunity for public 

2 comment, in consultation with the State racing com3 missions, to develop and maintain a nationwide 

4 database of racehorse safety, performance, health, 

5 and injury information for the purpose of conducting 

6 an epidemiological study; 

7 (9) in carrying out paragraph (8), to require 

8 covered persons and equine industry representatives 

9 to collect and submit for inclusion in such database 

10 such information as the RHSO considers necessary 

11 to further the goal of increased horse welfare; 

12 (10) with respect to covered persons— 

13 (A) subject to section 102, to issue sub14 poenas and investigate rule violations; and 

15 (B) to refer to the appropriate State rac16 ing commission any such violation for enforce17 ment action unless the State racing commission 

18 concerned agrees to give that enforcement au19 thority to the RHSO; 

20 (11) in consultation with member States, to de21 velop uniform standards for veterinarian’s and stew22 ard’s lists and uniform procedures for entering 

23 horses on, and removing horses from, such lists; 

24 (12) to establish, and conduct oversight activi25 ties with respect to, the scientific medication control 


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1 committees under section 201 and the Racetrack 

2 Safety Committee under 302; 

3 (13) in carrying out paragraph (12), with re4 spect to members of the committees referred to in 

5 that paragraph— 

6 (A) to assess such members for potential 

7 conflicts on a case-by-case basis; and 

8 (B) to determine, in the sole discretion of 

9 the Board, whether the potential conflict re10 quires removal from the committee or denial of 

11 the opportunity to vote on an item pending be12 fore the relevant committee; 

13 (14) to carry out activities described in sub14 section (e) relating to laboratory accreditation; and 

15 (15) to ensure that member States comply with 

16 the terms of this Act, the interstate compact, and 

17 the rules adopted by the Board under this section, 

18 including the prohibition on interstate off-track wa19 gers among non-member States specified in section 

20 4(c). 

21 (d) FUNDING.— 

22 (1) INITIAL FUNDING.—The RHSO, acting 

23 through the Board, shall assess an initial fee from 

24 each State racing commission of a member State in 

25 an amount determined by the Board to be sufficient 


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1 to cover the startup costs of the racing commission 

2 for the first full year that begins after the effective 

3 date specified in section 502(a). 

4 (2) PERMANENT FUNDING.— 

5 (A) ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION OF

6 FEES BY STATES.— 

7 (i) IN GENERAL.—Beginning on a 

8 date determined by the RHSO, each State 

9 racing commission of a member State shall 

10 remit to the RHSO an amount of fees de11 termined under subparagraph (B), in ac12 cordance with a schedule developed by the 

13 RHSO. 

14 (ii) DETERMINATION OF METHODS.— 

15 Each State racing commission of a mem16 ber State shall determine, subject to the 

17 applicable laws, regulations, and contracts 

18 of the State concerned, the method by 

19 which the amount of fees determined in ac20 cordance with subparagraph (B) shall be 

21 allocated, assessed, and collected. 

22 (B) ANNUAL CALCULATION OF AMOUNTS

23 REQUIRED.— 

24 (i) IN GENERAL.—For the first year 

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1 section, not later than the date determined 

2 by the RHSO, and not later than Novem3 ber 1 each year thereafter, the RHSO shall 

4 determine and provide to each State racing 

5 commission the estimated amount required 

6 from each member State— 

7 (I) to fund the member State’s 

8 proportionate share of the expendi9 tures incurred in administering the 

10 horseracing scientific medication con11 trol rules under subsection (c)(1) and 

12 the racetrack safety rules under sec13 tion subsection (c)(2) for each breed 

14 of covered horses racing in covered 

15 horseraces in the State; and 

16 (II) to liquidate any loan under17 taken or other debt incurred to cover 

18 a shortfall in fees assessed for the 

19 current calendar year and any pre20 ceding calendar year. 

21 (ii) BASIS OF CALCULATION.—The 

22 amounts calculated under clause (i) shall 

23 be based on the annual breed-specific 

24 budget of the RHSO for the breed in that 

25 State for the following year as approved by 


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1 the Board of Directors after taking into 

2 account— 

3 (I) the projected number of rac4 ing starts for the year separately for 

5 each breed in that State; and 

6 (II) any other sources of RHSO 

7 income. 

8 (C) STATE RACING COMMISSION ASSESS9 MENT.— 

10 (i) SOURCES.—A State may fund the 

11 amount required under subparagraph 

12 (B)(i) from a variety of sources, including 

13 foal registration fees, sales contributions, 

14 starter fees, track fees, and other fees on 

15 covered persons. 

16 (ii) BREED-SPECIFIC ASSESSMENTS.— 

17 In assessing fees to meet the requirement 

18 under subparagraph (B), a State racing 

19 commission shall assess fees on a breed20 specific basis, for the Standardbred, Thor21 oughbred, and the Quarter Horse indus22 tries operating within that State. Each 

23 such assessment shall be specifically ear24 marked for the development, refinement, 

25 and maintenance of— 


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1 (I) horseracing scientific medica2 tion control rules consistent with sub3 section (c)(1) that are specific and 

4 limited to each breed’s unique per5 formance model and developed safety 

6 protocols; and 

7 (II) racetrack safety rules con8 sistent with subsection (c)(2) that are 

9 specific and limited to each breed’s 

10 unique performance model and devel11 oped safety protocols. 

12 (iii) NO COMMINGLING.—A State rac13 ing commission of a member State shall 

14 ensure that funds assessed by the member 

15 State for a single breed of covered horses 

16 shall not be commingled for the use or sub17 sidy of any other breed of covered horses. 

18 (iv) THREE-FOURTHS MAJORITY VOTE

19 REQUIRED FOR RATE INCREASES.—In the 

20 case of a proposed increase in the amount 

21 required under clause (i) that exceeds 5 

22 percent, such increase shall only become 

23 effective if the increase is approved by a 

24 vote of not less than a three-fourths major25 ity of the Board. 


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1 (3) BORROWING.—The RHSO may incur debt 

2 to carry out the duties of the RHSO but may not 

3 accept loans from any covered person or equine in4 dustry representative. 

5 (e) TESTING LABORATORIES.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The RHSO shall review ex7 isting rules relating to laboratory accreditation and 

8 testing standards issued by the State racing commis9 sions and the National Veterinary Services Labora10 tories of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

11 Service of the Department of Agriculture. 

12 (2) ADMINISTRATION.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The RHSO shall select 

14 an accreditation body to conduct the accredita15 tion of laboratories and the audits of labora16 tories so accredited to ensure compliance with 

17 rules issued under subsection (c)(1). 

18 (B) AUTHORITY.—The accreditation body 

19 selected under subparagraph (A) shall have the 

20 authority to require specific test samples to be 

21 directed to, and tested by, laboratories with spe22 cial expertise in the required tests. 

23 (C) CONDITION OF ACCREDITATION.—The 

24 accreditation body so selected shall ensure that 

25 each laboratory seeking accreditation to conduct 


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1 testing of covered horses has a relationship with 

2 a national laboratory, such as the National Vet3 erinary Services Laboratories of the Animal and 

4 Plant Health Inspection Service. 

5 (3) SELECTION OF LABORATORIES.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—A State racing commis7 sion may select, for purposes of testing samples 

8 from covered horses racing in covered 

9 horseraces in the State concerned, a laboratory 

10 accredited by the accreditation body selected 

11 under paragraph (2). 

12 (B) SELECTION BY THE RHSO.—If a State 

13 racing commission selects a laboratory that is 

14 not accredited by the accreditation body se15 lected under paragraph (2), the RHSO shall se16 lect a laboratory accredited by the accreditation 

17 body selected under paragraph (2) to test sam18 ples taken in that State. 

19 SEC. 102. ROLE OF STATES AND STATE RACING COMMIS20 SIONS. 

21 (a) ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY.— 

22 (1) STATE ELECTION TO ENFORCE.—A State 

23 racing commission may elect to exercise enforcement 

24 authority with respect to the rules issued under 


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1 paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 101(c) within the 

2 State concerned. 

3 (2) RHSO RULES.—If a State racing commis4 sion does not make the election described in para5 graph (1), the RHSO shall enforce the rules issued 

6 under paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 101(c) with7 in the State, pursuant to a memorandum of under8 standing entered into with the RHSO. 

9 (b) PREEMPTION.—The rules of the RHSO promul10 gated in accordance with this Act shall preempt any provi11 sion of State law or regulation of member States with re12 spect to matters within the jurisdiction of the RHSO. 

13 (c) UNFAIR OR DECEPTIVE ACTS OR PRACTICES.— 

14 Each member State shall, as a condition of being a mem15 ber of the interstate compact, have in effect a statute that 

16 treats as an unfair or deceptive act or practice the sale 

17 of a covered horse, or of any other horse in anticipation 

18 of its future participation in a covered race, if the seller— 

19 (1) knows or has reason to know the horse has 

20 been administered— 

21 (A) a bisphosphonate prior to the horse’s 

22 fourth birthday; or 

23 (B) any other substance or method the 

24 RHSO determines has a long-term degrading 


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1 effect on the soundness of the covered horse; 

2 and 

3 (2) fails to disclose to the buyer the administra4 tion of the bisphosphonate or other such substance 

5 or method. 

6 TITLE II—HORSERACING SCI7 ENTIFIC MEDICATION CON8 TROL 

9 SEC. 201. SCIENTIFIC MEDICATION CONTROL COMMITTEES. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of developing, up11 dating, and implementing a set of proposed rules with re12 spect to horseracing scientific medication control for cov13 ered horses, covered persons, and covered horseraces, the 

14 RHSO shall establish a scientific medication control com15 mittee with respect to each breed of horses involved in cov16 ered horserace, as follows: 

17 (1) A Standardbred Racing Scientific Medica18 tion Control Committee. 

19 (2) A Quarter Horse Racing Scientific Medica20 tion Control Committee. 

21 (3) A Thoroughbred Racing Scientific Medica22 tion Control Committee. 

23 (b) DUTIES.—Each scientific medication control com24 mittee shall draft proposed rules regarding scientific mediVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:27 Oct 04, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5693.IH H5693

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1 cation control, in accordance with subsection (e), and shall 

2 recommend the proposed rules to the Board. 

3 (c) MEETINGS.—Except as provided in subsection 

4 (e), meetings of a scientific medication control committee 

5 may be closed. 

6 (d) MEMBERSHIP.— 

7 (1) COMPOSITION.—Each scientific medication 

8 control committee shall be composed of 7 members, 

9 as follows: 

10 (A) REGULATORY MEMBERS.—Three mem11 bers of each scientific medication control com12 mittee shall be appointed— 

13 (i) by the Board from within the 

14 equine industry; and 

15 (ii) based on their knowledge of 

16 equine exercise physiology, forensic toxi17 cology, or equine pharmacology. 

18 (B) INDUSTRY MEMBERS.—Four members 

19 of each scientific medication control committee 

20 shall be appointed as follows: 

21 (i) For the Standardbred Racing Sci22 entific Medication Control Committee, such 

23 appointments shall be made by the United 

24 States Trotting Association. 


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1 (ii) For the Quarter Horse Racing 

2 Scientific Medication Control Committee, 

3 such appointments shall be made by the 

4 American Quarter Horse Association. 

5 (iii) For the Thoroughbred Racing 

6 Scientific Medication Control Committee, 

7 such appointments shall be made by the 

8 National Horsemen’s Benevolent and Pro9 tective Association. 

10 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.— 

11 (A) IN GENERAL.—The members of a sci12 entific medication control committee appointed 

13 under paragraph (1)(B) shall— 

14 (i) have significant, recent experience 

15 in medication control or toxicology re16 search; 

17 (ii) hold a doctorate of philosophy or 

18 equivalent degree; and 

19 (B) ADDITIONAL QUALIFICATIONS.—Of 

20 the members appointed under paragraph 

21 (1)(B)— 

22 (i) at least 1 member shall be a math23 ematician or statistician with experience in 

24 threshold determination; 


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1 (ii) at least 1 member shall be an 

2 equine exercise physiologist; 

3 (iii) at least 1 member shall be an 

4 equine pharmacologist; and 

5 (iv) at least 1 member shall be an an6 alytical chemist. 

7 (3) TERM.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.— Except as provided in 

9 subparagraph (B), the term of each member of 

10 a scientific medication control committee shall 

11 not exceed 3 years. Such term is renewable for 

12 an indefinite number of terms. 

13 (B) INITIAL TERM.—For purposes of stag14 gering the terms of appointment, the members 

15 first appointed under paragraph (1)(A) shall 

16 serve an initial term of 4 years. 

17 (C) LIMITATION.—No member of a sci18 entific medication control committee may serve 

19 as a member on more than 2 scientific medica20 tion control committees. 

21 (4) CHAIRPERSON.—The chairperson of each 

22 scientific medication control committee shall be 

23 elected annually from among the members of the sci24 entific medication control committee by majority 

25 vote of the scientific medication control committee. 


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1 (5) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—Each member 

2 appointed to a scientific medication control com3 mittee shall, before the beginning of any meeting of 

4 the scientific medication control committee, declare 

5 any conflicts of interest directly pertinent to the 

6 agenda of such meeting. 

7 (6) QUORUM.—In order to consider at a meet8 ing any rule being proposed to the Board, each sci9 entific medication control committee shall have in at10 tendance at such a meeting (either in person or re11 motely) a majority of members of the scientific 

12 medication control committee. 

13 (e) RULES FOR SCIENTIFIC MEDICAL CONTROL.— 

14 (1) ADOPTION OF RULES.—Not later than 90 

15 days before the consideration of a rule (or a modi16 fication to such a rule), each scientific medication 

17 control committee shall hold an open meeting at 

18 which covered persons or their representatives may 

19 provide input. 

20 (2) NOTICE OF MEETING.—Not less than 45 

21 days before the date on which the meeting referred 

22 to in paragraph (1) is to be held, the agenda, loca23 tion, and date of such meeting shall— 

24 (A) be posted on the internet website of 

25 the RHSO; 


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1 (B) submitted to the Racing Medication 

2 and Testing Consortium, the Harness Racing 

3 Medication Collaborative, and the American 

4 Quarter Horse Association Medication Com5 mittee; and 

6 (C) provided to any individual or entity re7 questing such information. 

8 (3) RECORDING OF INPUT.—If any input from 

9 a covered person (or a representative of a covered 

10 person) is provided during a meeting referred to in 

11 paragraph (1), or provided in writing, such input 

12 shall be transcribed and recorded and made part of 

13 the record of the scientific medication control com14 mittee concerned. 

15 (4) REVIEW OF MEDICATION AND THRESHOLD

16 RULES.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Each scientific medica18 tion control committee shall review— 

19 (i) all existing medication and thresh20 old rules issued by State racing commis21 sions with respect to covered horses; and 

22 (ii) all available research on medica23 tion thresholds for covered horses. 

24 (B) PENALTY RECOMMENDATIONS.—A sci25 entific medication control committee may revise 


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1 penalty recommendations with respect to each 

2 substance reviewed as part of the medication 

3 and threshold review under subparagraph (A). 

4 (C) MEDICATIONS.—Each scientific medi5 cation control committee shall— 

6 (i) review the development of any new 

7 medication on an ongoing basis to deter8 mine whether such medication should be 

9 subject to the medication control rules 

10 issued pursuant to section 101(c); and 

11 (ii) if the scientific medication control 

12 committee determines that such a medica13 tion should be subject to such rules, the 

14 scientific medication control committee 

15 shall develop and submit to the Board for 

16 approval proposed modifications to such 

17 rules to include such medication. 

18 SEC. 202. HORSERACING SCIENTIFIC MEDICATION CON19 TROL RULES. 

20 (a) APPLICABILITY.—Scientific medication control 

21 rules issued under section 101(c)(1) for each breed of cov22 ered horse shall apply to— 

23 (1) covered horseraces, covered persons, and 

24 covered horses in member States; and 


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1 (2) any covered horse or covered person from a 

2 State that is not a member State that seeks to race 

3 in a covered horserace in a member State. 

4 (b) DEVELOPMENT OF PROPOSED RULES.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—In developing proposed sci6 entific medication control rules with respect to a 

7 breed of covered horses, to the extent possible, a sci8 entific medication control committee shall— 

9 (A) use scientific methods; 

10 (B) address all topics set forth in sub11 section (c); and 

12 (C) take into account the unique charac13 teristics and needs of such breed and its racing 

14 performance model, including the varying num15 ber and nature of races each year for the breed. 

16 (2) TRANSITION.—Until the date on which 

17 rules issued by the RHSO pursuant to section 

18 101(c) become effective, the rules of the State con19 cerned shall apply with respect to the administration 

20 of medication to covered horses racing in covered 

21 horseraces. 

22 (c) ELEMENTS.—The proposed rules referred to in 

23 subsection (b) shall provide— 

24 (1) that— 


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1 (A) a covered horse may only compete in 

2 a covered horserace if the horse is— 

3 (i) free from the active pharma4 cological effect of medications, other for5 eign substances, and methods that enhance 

6 the natural performance of the covered 

7 horse; and 

8 (ii) unencumbered by— 

9 (I) foreign substances; and 

10 (II) diseases or conditions; 

11 (B) a covered horse that is injured or de12 termined by a veterinarian to be unsound may 

13 not train or participate in a covered horserace; 

14 and 

15 (C) the use of medications, other foreign 

16 substances, and treatment methods that mask 

17 pain in order to allow an injured or unsound 

18 covered horse to train or race in a covered 

19 horserace shall be prohibited; 

20 (D) with respect to the uniformity of rules, 

21 standards, procedures, and protocols regulating 

22 medication and treatment methods for covered 

23 horses and covered horseraces, such rules, 

24 standards, procedures, and protocols— 


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1 (i) shall be uniform within each breed 

2 of covered horse; and 

3 (ii) shall not be imposed on all 3 

4 breeds unless specifically adopted by the 

5 scientific medication control committee for 

6 each breed; and 

7 (E) breed-specific rules, standards, proce8 dures, and protocols shall include breed-specific 

9 permissible thresholds, medication withdrawal 

10 guidelines, and other breed-specific concerns 

11 with respect to the administration of medica12 tion; and 

13 (2) for— 

14 (A) the development, in consultation with 

15 the State racing commissions and the National 

16 Veterinary Services Laboratories of the Animal 

17 and Plant Health Inspection Service, of a list of 

18 permitted and prohibited medications, methods, 

19 and substances, for each breed of covered horse; 

20 (B) a process for the review by the sci21 entific medication control committee concerned 

22 for the administration of any medication to a 

23 covered horse during the 24-hour period pre24 ceding the next racing start of the covered 

25 horse; and 


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1 (C) the performance and management of 

2 test distribution planning (including intel3 ligence-based testing), the sample collection 

4 process, and in-competition and out-of-competi5 tion testing (including no-advance-notice test6 ing). 

7 TITLE III—RACETRACK SAFETY 

8 SEC. 301. DEFINITION OF COMMITTEE. 

9 In this title, the term ‘‘Committee’’ means the Race10 track Safety Committee established under section 302. 

11 SEC. 302. RACETRACK SAFETY COMMITTEE. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of developing, 

13 updating, and implementing mandatory horseracing race14 track safety rules for covered horses, covered persons, and 

15 covered horseraces under this Act, the RHSO shall estab16 lish a Racetrack Safety Committee. 

17 (b) DUTIES.—The Committee shall— 

18 (1) draft proposed rules with respect to race19 track safety for each horse breed competing in cov20 ered horseraces, in accordance with subsection (d); 

21 (2) recommend such proposed rules to the 

22 Board; and 

23 (3) for purposes of making such recommenda24 tions, obtain testimony or other documented comVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:27 Oct 04, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5693.IH H5693

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1 ment from racetrack superintendents from each af2 fected breed of covered horses. 

3 (c) MEMBERSHIP.—The Committee shall be com4 posed of 7 members as follows: 

5 (1) REGULATORY MEMBERS.—Three such mem6 bers shall be representatives of the equine industry, 

7 selected by the Board for their knowledge of race8 track safety, management, and maintenance. 

9 (2) INDUSTRY MEMBERS.—Four such members 

10 shall be appointed as follows: 

11 (A) One member shall be appointed by the 

12 United States Trotting Association. 

13 (B) One member shall be appointed by the 

14 American Quarter Horse Association. 

15 (C) One member shall be appointed by the 

16 National Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective 

17 Association. 

18 (D) One member shall be a racetrack su19 perintendent appointed by the Association of 

20 Racing Commissioners International. 

21 (3) TERM.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

23 subparagraph (B), the term of each member of 

24 the Committee shall not exceed 3 years. Such 


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1 term is renewable for an indefinite number of 

2 terms. 

3 (B) INITIAL TERM.—For purposes of stag4 gering the terms of appointment, the members 

5 first appointed under paragraph (1) shall serve 

6 an initial term of 4 years. 

7 (4) CHAIRPERSON.—The chairperson of the 

8 Committee shall be elected annually from among the 

9 members of the Committee by majority vote of the 

10 Committee. 

11 (5) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Each member of the 

13 Committee shall— 

14 (i) before accepting appointment as a 

15 member of the Committee, disclose any po16 tential conflict of interest; and 

17 (ii) notify the full Board immediately 

18 upon engaging in any activity that the 

19 RHSO determines may be perceived as a 

20 conflict. 

21 (B) RECUSAL REQUIRED.—A member of 

22 the Committee shall recuse himself or herself 

23 from discussion of any item at a meeting of the 

24 Committee if such discussion— 


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1 (i) relates to the direct financial inter2 est of any member of the Committee; and 

3 (ii) does not apply to all covered 

4 horses within a breed. 

5 (6) REMOVAL AND ETHICS.—The Board may 

6 remove by majority vote a member of the Committee 

7 for— 

8 (A) neglect of duty, unethical behavior, or 

9 malfeasance in office (including conduct deter10 mined by the Board to be injurious to the integ11 rity of horseracing, such as contract violations 

12 and perjury); or 

13 (B) conviction of a violation of a Federal 

14 or State civil or criminal law related to horse15 racing. 

16 (7) QUORUM.—In order to consider at a meet17 ing any rule being proposed to the Board, the Com18 mittee shall have in attendance at such a meeting 

19 (either in person or remotely) a majority of members 

20 of the Committee. 

21 (d) PROCESS FOR ADOPTION OF RULES.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days be23 fore the consideration of a proposed rule (or a modi24 fication to such a rule), the Committee shall hold an 


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1 open meeting at which covered persons or their rep2 resentatives may provide input. 

3 (2) NOTICE OF MEETING.—Not less than 45 

4 days before the date on which the meeting referred 

5 to in paragraph (1) is to be held, the agenda, loca6 tion, and date of such meeting shall— 

7 (A) be posted on the internet website of 

8 the RHSO; 

9 (B) submitted to the Racing Medication 

10 and Testing Consortium, the Harness Racing 

11 Medication Collaborative, and the American 

12 Quarter Horse Association Medication; and 

13 (C) provided to any individual or entity re14 questing such information. 

15 (3) RECORDING OF INPUT.—If any input from 

16 a covered person (or a representative of a covered 

17 person) is provided during a meeting referred to in 

18 paragraph (1), or provided in writing, such input 

19 shall be transcribed and recorded and made part of 

20 the record of the Committee. 

21 SEC. 303. RACETRACK SAFETY RULES. 

22 (a) APPLICABILITY.—The racetrack safety rules es23 tablished pursuant to section 101(c)(2) shall apply with 

24 respect to covered horses, covered persons, and covered 

25 horseraces. 


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1 (b) DEVELOPMENT OF PROPOSED RULES.—In devel2 oping proposed racetrack safety rules, the Committee 

3 shall— 

4 (1) consult with the State racing commissions; 

5 and 

6 (2) take into consideration safety standards in 

7 use as of the date of the enactment of this Act, in8 cluding— 

9 (A) the National Thoroughbred Racing As10 sociation Safety and Integrity Alliance Code of 

11 Standards; and 

12 (B) the Association of Racing Commis13 sioners International Model Rules. 

14 (c) ELEMENTS.—The proposed rules referred to in 

15 subsection (b) shall include the following: 

16 (1) Training and racing safety standards and 

17 protocols that— 

18 (A) take into account regional differences 

19 and the character of different racing facilities 

20 that may cause variations based on geo21 graphical and environmental differences; 

22 (B) are otherwise uniform within each 

23 breed of covered horses and unique to the per24 formance model of each such breed; 


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1 (C) are consistent with the humane treat2 ment of covered horses; and 

3 (D) may include lists of permitted and pro4 hibited practices, methods, and track surfaces 

5 that affect safety. 

6 (2) Track safety standards and protocols, uni7 form within each breed of covered horses, which may 

8 include rules governing— 

9 (A) human and equine injury reporting 

10 and prevention; and 

11 (B) oversight and movement of covered 

12 horses. 

13 (3) With respect to the accreditation by the 

14 RHSO of racetracks within each breed of covered 

15 horses racing in covered horseraces— 

16 (A) safety, training, and performance 

17 standards of such accreditation; 

18 (B) the process by which a racetrack with19 in each breed may achieve and maintain such 

20 accreditation; and 

21 (C) the penalties to be imposed by the 

22 RHSO or a State racing commission, as appli23 cable, in the case of a racetrack not complying 

24 with such standards. 


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1 (4) In the case of a racetrack that does not, as 

2 of the date on which the rules established pursuant 

3 to section 101(c)(2) become effective, meet the 

4 standards for accreditation issued pursuant to para5 graph (2), a process for the extension of provisional 

6 or interim accreditation for a period not to exceed 

7 1 year— 

8 (A) to a racetrack accredited by the Na9 tional Thoroughbred Racing Association Safety 

10 and Integrity Alliance; and 

11 (B) that is— 

12 (i) determined at a meeting that takes 

13 place on a date during such 1-year period; 

14 and 

15 (ii) sanctioned by the United States 

16 Trotting Association or any entity empow17 ered to perform such function on behalf of 

18 the American Quarter Horse Association. 

19 (5) The establishment and process for main20 taining a racing surface quality maintenance system 

21 that— 

22 (A) takes into account regional environ23 mental differences and the character of dif24 ferent racing facilities, including differences 

25 among breeds; and 


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1 (B) may include requirements for— 

2 (i) track surface design and consist3 ency; and 

4 (ii) standard operating procedures re5 lated to track surface monitoring and 

6 maintenance, such as standardized sea7 sonal assessment, daily tracking, and 

8 measurement. 

9 (6) A process for injury and fatality analysis, 

10 which may include— 

11 (A) pre-training and post-training and race 

12 inspections; 

13 (B) use of a veterinarian’s list or a stew14 ard’s list that meet standards specified under 

15 section 101(c)(11); and 

16 (C) jockey, exercise rider, and driver con17 cussion protocols. 

18 (7) øRequirements relating to the conduct of¿ 

19 safety and performance research. 

20 (8) øRules relating to the establishment of¿ 

21 educational programs. 

22 TITLE IV—RULE VIOLATIONS 

23 SEC. 401. PROHIBITED ACTS. 

24 In enforcing the rules issued under section 101(c), 

25 the Board shall prohibit the following: 


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1 (1) Certain nontherapeutic medications and 

2 substances, including— 

3 (A) the administration to a covered horse 

4 of such a medication or substance; 

5 (B) the presence of such a medication or 

6 substance in a blood, urine, or hair sample of 

7 a covered horse; 

8 (C) the use or attempted use of such a 

9 medication or substance on a covered horse; 

10 (D) possession or attempted possession of 

11 such a medication or substance; 

12 (E) trafficking or attempted trafficking in 

13 any such medication or substance; and 

14 (F) manufacturing, producing, or formu15 lating such a medication or substance. 

16 (2) Certain therapeutic medications and sub17 stances in quantitative amounts that exceed the ir18 relevant concentration present in a covered horse 

19 during a prohibited timeframe before or after the 

20 covered horse races in a covered horserace, includ21 ing— 

22 (A) the administration to a covered horse 

23 of such a medication or substance; 


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1 (B) the presence of such a medication or 

2 substance in a blood, urine, or hair sample of 

3 a covered horse; and 

4 (C) the use or attempted use of such a 

5 medication or substance on a covered horse; 

6 (3) Refusal or failure— 

7 (A) without compelling justification, to 

8 submit a covered horse for collection of a blood, 

9 urine, or hair sample; 

10 (B) to cooperate with the RHSO, a State 

11 racing commission, or an agent thereof during 

12 any investigation; 

13 (C) to respond truthfully, to the best of a 

14 covered person’s knowledge, to a question of the 

15 RHSO, a State racing commission, or an agent 

16 thereof with respect to any matter under the ju17 risdiction of such entity; and 

18 (D) in the case of a racetrack, to be in 

19 compliance with track safety standards. 

20 (4) Tampering or attempted tampering with the 

21 application of the rules issued by or process adopted 

22 by the RHSO under section 101(c), including— 

23 (A) the intentional interference, or an at24 tempt to interfere, with the RHSO, a State rac25 ing commission, or an agent thereof; 


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1 (B) the procurement or the provision of 

2 fraudulent information to the RHSO, a State 

3 racing commission, or an agent thereof; and 

4 (C) the intimidation of, or an attempt to 

5 intimidate, a potential witness. 

6 (5) Assisting, encouraging, aiding, abetting, 

7 conspiring, covering up, or any other type of inten8 tional complicity involving a violation of a rule 

9 issued under section 101(c) or the violation of a pe10 riod of suspension or eligibility imposed on a covered 

11 person, covered horse, or covered horserace. 

12 (6) Threatening or seeking to intimidate a per13 son with the intent of discouraging the person from 

14 the good faith reporting to the RHSO, a State rac15 ing commission, or an agent thereof, of information 

16 that relates to— 

17 (A) an alleged violation of a rule issued by 

18 the RHSO under section 101(c); or 

19 (B) alleged noncompliance with such a 

20 rule. 

21 SEC. 402. RESULTS MANAGEMENT AND DISCIPLINARY 

22 PROCESS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall issue rules with 

24 respect to the disciplinary process for safety, performance, 

25 and scientific medication control rule violations, which 


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1 may include the existing Model Rules of the Association 

2 of Racing Commissioners International. 

3 (b) ELEMENTS.—The rules and processes issued 

4 under subsection (a) shall include the following: 

5 (1) The undertaking of investigations at race6 track and nonracetrack facilities related to safety 

7 violations. In performing investigations, the RHSO 

8 and State racing commissions shall seek assistance 

9 as needed. 

10 (2) Procedures for— 

11 (A) investigating, charging, and adjudi12 cating violations; and 

13 (B) the enforcement of administrative 

14 sanctions. 

15 (3) A schedule of administrative sanctions for 

16 violations. 

17 (4) Disciplinary hearings, which may include 

18 binding arbitration, mediation, administrative sanc19 tions, and research. 

20 (5) Management of violation results. 

21 (6) Referral for criminal law enforcement inves22 tigation. 

23 (7) Provisions for notification of safety, per24 formance, and scientific medication control rule vio25 lations. 


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1 (8) A process by which a noncompliant member 

2 State may be removed by unanimous vote of the re3 maining member States. 

4 (9) Hearing procedures. 

5 (10) Standards for burden of proof. 

6 (11) Presumptions, including a rebuttable pre7 sumption of liability for covered persons who are 

8 trainers for any violations of the scientific medica9 tion control rules under section 101(c)(1). 

10 (12) Evidentiary rules. 

11 (13) Appeals. 

12 (14) Guidelines for confidentiality and public 

13 reporting of decisions. 

14 (c) DUE PROCESS.—The rules established under sub15 section (a) shall provide for adequate due process, includ16 ing— 

17 (1) impartial hearing officers or tribunals com18 mensurate with the seriousness of the alleged safety, 

19 performance, or scientific medication control rule 

20 violation and the possible civil sanctions for such vio21 lation; 

22 (2) the right to counsel, to confront witnesses, 

23 and to have a transcribed record of the proceedings; 


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1 (3) the right to have a decision rendered not 

2 later than 60 days after the date on which the hear3 ing closes. 

4 SEC. 403. ADMINISTRATIVE SANCTIONS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall— 

6 (1) review existing Model Rules of the Associa7 tion of Racing Commissioners International applica8 ble to a specific breed, imposing administrative sanc9 tions against covered persons or covered horses for 

10 safety, performance, and medication control rule vio11 lations; and 

12 (2) subject to subsection (b), issue and update 

13 rules relating to administrative sanctions referred to 

14 in paragraph (1). 

15 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The rules established under 

16 subsection (a) shall— 

17 (1) take into account the unique aspects of 

18 horseracing; 

19 (2) be designed to ensure fair and transparent 

20 horseraces; and 

21 (3) deter safety, performance, and scientific 

22 medication control rule violations. 

23 (c) SEVERITY.—The administrative sanctions under 

24 subsection (a) may include— 


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1 (1) lifetime bans from horseracing, 

2 disgorgement of purses, monetary fines and pen3 alties, and changes to the order of finish in covered 

4 races; and 

5 (2) with respect to scientific medication control 

6 rule violators, an opportunity to reduce the applica7 ble administrative sanctions that is comparable to 

8 the opportunity provided by the Protocol for Olym9 pic Movement Testing of the United States Medica10 tion Agency. 

11 TITLE V—GENERAL PROVISIONS 

12 SEC. 501. EFFECTIVE DATES. 

13 (a) RHSO.—Except as provided in subsections (b) 

14 and (c), the provisions of this Act shall take effect on the 

15 later of— 

16 (1) the date that is 2 years after the date of the 

17 enactment of this Act; or 

18 (2) the date on which 2 or more States have en19 tered into the interstate compact pursuant to section 

20 4. 

21 (b) EXCEPTIONS.—Subsections (c), (d), and (e) of 

22 section 101, and titles II, III, and IV of this Act shall 

23 take effect 90 days after the date described in subsection 

24 (a). 


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1 (c) IMMEDIATE UPON ENACTMENT.—Sections 1, 2, 

2 and 3 and subsections (a) and (b) of section 4 shall take 

3 effect immediately upon the date of the enactment of this 

4 Act. 

Æ 


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