§ 304 — Right to hold harness race meetings and races

§ 304. Right to hold harness race meetings and races. Any corporation\nformed under the provisions of sections two hundred twenty-two through\nseven hundred five of this chapter, and any corporation or association\nwhich shall have conducted harness horse race meetings during two years\nprior to March thirty-first, nineteen hundred forty, and any town or\ncounty fair association or other fair association shall have the power\nand the right to hold one or more harness horse race meetings in each\nyear and to hold, maintain and conduct harness races at such meetings.\nAt such harness race meetings the corporation or association, or the\nowners of horses engaged in such races, or others who are not\nparticipants in the race, may contribute purses, prizes, premiums or\nstakes to be contested for, but no person or persons other than the\nowner or owners of a horse or horses contesting in a race shall have any\npecuniary interest in a purse, prize, premium or stake contested for in\nsuch race, or be entitled to or receive any portion thereof after such\nrace is finished, and the whole of such purse, prize, premium or stake\nshall be allotted in accordance with the terms and conditions of such\nrace. Such meeting shall not be held except during the period extending\nfrom the first day of January to the thirty-first day of December\ninclusive in each year. In counties having a population of two hundred\nfifty thousand or less, the commission may, however, permit the holding\nof one or more harness horse race meetings and the conduct of harness\nraces at such meetings on a day or days not during such period if the\ncommission is satisfied that a special occasion makes the holding of\nsuch meetings and the conduct of such races on such day or days proper\nor necessary; but in no event shall such meetings or races be held or\nconducted on the twenty-fifth day of December. Such power and right,\nhowever, shall not include the right to conduct pari-mutuel betting at\nsuch harness horse race meetings except pursuant to license granted by\nthe commission pursuant to sections two hundred twenty-two through seven\nhundred five of this chapter.\n § 45. Section 305 of the racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law\nis amended to read as follows:\n § 305. Pari-mutuel betting at harness races. No more than eight\ncorporations or associations shall be licensed by the commission in any\none year to conduct a pari-mutuel meet or meets. Said pari-mutuel\nbetting conducted at such meetings shall be under the general\nsupervision and control of the commission which shall make rules\nregulating the conduct of such pari-mutuel betting in accordance with\nthe provisions of sections two hundred twenty-two through seven hundred\nfive of this chapter. The department of taxation and finance is charged\nwith the financial administration of pari-mutuel betting as prescribed\nin this article and as supplemented by the rules and regulations of the\ncommission. The department of taxation and finance shall have authority\nto prescribe the forms and the system of accounting to be employed, and\nthrough its representatives shall at all times have power of access to\nand examination of any equipment relating to such betting.\n