TwinSpires Still Legal in Michigan Despite State Pushback: Federal Ruling

• TwinSpires permitted to continue in Michigan operations despite state shutdown efforts
• Federal judge grants preliminary injunction against MGCB
• Ruling could impact states where horse betting is legal but ADWs are not

A federal judge in Michigan has ruled that advance-deposit wagering (ADW) platform TwinSpires Racebook can continue to operate in the state, despite efforts by the Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) to shut it down.

TwinSpires’ owner, Churchill Downs Inc., sued the MGCB last month after the regulator issued a summary suspension order against the platform, asserting its operations were illegal under state law.

Since there hasn’t been any live thoroughbred racing in the state since 2018, TwinSpires was breaking the law, the regulator asserted.

TwinSpires Rebels

While Churchill Downs’ competitors complied with the notice, the Kentucky-based operator dug in its heels, signaling its intent to defy the MGCB, which led to the suspension order.

Churchill Downs claimed in its lawsuit that the state’s local partner mandate, which was introduced in 2019, contravenes the federal Interstate Horseracing Act (IHA) of 1978, which it said trumps state law.

Last Wednesday, Judge Hala Y. Jarbou agreed, granting a preliminary injunction for TwinSpires to continue operations.

The Act sought to settle the issue of interstate parimutuel wagering on horseraces to ensure that states continued to “cooperate with one another in the acceptance of legal interstate wagers,” according to Churchill Down’s complaint.

Ambiguous Language

For Jarbou, the case came down to ambiguous language within HRA, which authorizes off-track betting provided there is consent from the “off-track racing commission” in the state where the wager is accepted.

TwinSpires is regulated in Oregon, and Churchill Downs considered this to be the state where the wager is accepted.

Meanwhile, an “off-track racing commission” is defined by HRA as an entity “designated by state statute or … by regulation, with jurisdiction to regulate off-track betting in that state.”

The parties disagreed on the meaning of “that state” – for Churchill Downs, it’s Oregon, and for the MGCB it’s Michigan.

Unless the wager is accepted in Michigan, Michigan Gaming Control Board is not the off-track commission that must consent to the wager,” Jarbou wrote. “A wager placed through electronic means is accepted where the accepting entity is located. TwinSpires accepts interstate off-track wagers at its Oregon-based processing hub.”

The ruling could pave the way for ADW providers like TwinSpires to operate in states where parimutuel horse wagering is legal under state law but ADW is not, such as Texas.