Tell the FTC to require "no-effect" thresholds in equine testing

Horsemen and racing enthusiasts – we need your help! Please submit a comment to the FTC!

Environmental transfers occur when horses are exposed to tiny amounts of substances not through direct administration, but via contaminants introduced by, for example, the lack of cleanliness or sterility within the stalls and barns they are placed in. Innocent owners and trainers are being wrongfully maligned and punished as cheaters after the HISA Authority and its enforcement arm, the Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit (“HIWU”), find a miniscule amount of a foreign substance in a horse that has no effect whatsoever on its performance or health. Numerous owners and trainers have been unduly punished and have forfeited hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost earnings and legal fees, and in some instances their careers—all because the HISA Authority does not recognize no-effect thresholds for its laboratory testing. 

Recently, the National HBPA filed a Petition for Rulemaking with the FTC urging them to issue no-effect thresholds for pharmacologically irrelevant concentrations of foreign substances that have no effect on a horse. The FTC is now seeking public comments on the petition, and if you agree that change is needed, the FTC needs to hear from you now! Comments are due soon—by Friday, August 9.

It's simple!

Fill out your information in the boxes at right. 

While we encourage you to write a personal comment in the second, blank comment box, we also have a prepared message in the top box, which you can edit as you wish. Personalized comments always carry more weight.

Then click "SEND MESSAGE". That's it! (If you received a similar Call to Action request on Monday, it's because you responded to an earlier campaign using a different email. If you already have sent an FTC comment out in response to Monday's request, thank you very much! But please do not send out another one. It's the number of individuals who response that's so important.)

There is power in numbers, and we must unite and make our voices heard. If we fail to act NOW, the FTC might overlook this important petition. Please share these instructions on your social media and encourage your family, friends, employees, and racing contacts to show their support by posting a public comment, as well.

The FTC must intervene to stop this injustice and you can help!

Should you have any questions or have trouble filling out the comment form, please email racing@hbpa.org with your name and cell phone number, and someone can reach out to you and walk you through the process over the phone.

Thanks for your support!

If you want to read our Petition for Rulemaking, you can copy this link and open in a browser: https://files.constantcontact.com/3ef6d5c8601/db7eb655-e9d0-475e-b9a5-4a1cd12c7ea4.pdf 

By submitting the form you are filing a document into an official docket "Federal Trade Commission FTC Seek Comments on Petition for Rulemaking from the National HBPA, Inc. and has published that rulemaking petition to adopt a rule to create no-effect thresholds for certain substances found in racehorses under the anti-doping and medication control (“ADMC”) program of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act of 2020 (Docket FTC-2024-0030). Any personal information included in your comment text and/or uploaded attachment(s) may be publicly viewable on the web. You're submitting comments as an individual in, or interested in, the horse-racing industry to: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/07/10/2024-15065/petition-for-rulemaking-of-the-national-hbpa-inc

Regulations.gov terms of participation: https://www.regulations.gov/user-notice

Regulations.gov privacy notice: https://www.regulations.gov/privacy-notice