AN ACT Relating to paint horses; amending RCW 67.16.010, 67.16.070, 67.16.080, 67.16.090, and 67.16.180; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that paint horses, "the sport model of the horse world," with their distinctive coat patterns of two-tone body markings of white and another color, have increased in popularity. Nation-wide, over eighty-five thousand paint horses were registered with the American Paint Horse Association through 1982. Washington state has eight hundred sixty-one paint horse owners and one thousand six hundred eighty-four registered paint horses with three hundred seventeen having show records. Paint horses are permitted to race in Idaho, Montana, Oregon, California, and Canada but not in Washington state. Washington paint horses are thus forced to go to out-of-state tracks to race. The legislature intends to include the paint horse among those breeds recognized for horse racing in the state to encourage the development of the breed and to allow these crowd-pleasing horses to race on our tracks.

Sec. 2. Section 1, chapter 55, Laws of 1933 as last amended by section 1, chapter 132, Laws of 1982 and RCW 67.16.010 are each amended to read as follows:

Unless the context otherwise requires, words and phrases as used herein shall mean:

"Commission" shall mean the Washington horse racing commission, hereinafter created.

"Person" shall mean and include individuals, firms, corporations and associations.

"Race meet" shall mean and include any exhibition of thoroughbred, quarter horse, appaloosa horse racing, arabian horse racing, paint horse racing, or standard bred harness horse racing, where the parimutuel system is used.

Singular shall include the plural, and the plural shall include the singular; and words importing one gender shall be regarded as including all other genders.

Sec. 3. Section 8, chapter 55, Laws of 1933 as amended by section 2, chapter 236, Laws of 1949 and RCW 67.16.070 are each amended to read as follows:

For the purpose of encouraging the breeding, within this state, of valuable thoroughbred, quarter, paint, and/or standard bred race horses, at least one race of each day's meet shall consist exclusively of Washington bred horses.

Sec. 4. Section 3, chapter 236, Laws of 1949 as last amended by section 2, chapter 132, Laws of 1982 and RCW 67.16.080 are each amended to read as follows:

A quarter horse to be eligible for a race meet herein shall be duly registered with the American Quarter Horse Association. An appaloosa horse to be eligible for a race meet herein shall be duly registered with the National Appaloosa Horse Club or any successor thereto. An arabian horse to be eligible for a race meet herein shall be duly registered with the Arabian Horse Registry of America, or any successor thereto. A paint horse to be eligible for a race meet herein shall be duly registered with the American Paint Horse Association, or any successor thereto.

Sec. 5. Section 4, chapter 236, Laws of 1949 as last amended by section 3, chapter 132, Laws of 1982 and RCW 67.16.090 are each amended to read as follows:

In any race meet in which quarter horses, thoroughbred horses, appaloosa horses, paint horses, or arabian horses participate, only horses of the same breed shall be allowed to compete in any ((~~individual~~)) mixed race.

Sec. 6. Section 14, chapter 2, Laws of 1983 and RCW 67.16.180 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Race meets of twenty-five days or less, which run sixty percent quarter horses and/or Appaloosa races and/or Arabian races, and/or paint races may retain fourteen percent from the gross receipts of any parimutuel machine; except that exotic races at such meets shall be permitted to retain an additional one percent of the gross receipts of all parimutuel pools during such exotic races with the additional retained amount used for Washington bred breeder awards, not to exceed twenty percent of the winner's share of the purse. Any portion of the remainder of the one percent may be used to support the general purse structure of the race meet, except that all such increased revenue to the licensee to be used for purses will be in addition to and will not supplant the customary purse structure between racetracks and participating horsemen. As used in this section, "exotic races" means daily doubles, quinellas, trifectas, and exactas. Exotic races are subject to the approval of the commission.

(2) For race meets of twenty-five days or less, which run sixty percent quarter horses and/or Appaloosa races and/or Arabian races and/or paint races, the licensee shall pay to the commission daily one percent of the gross receipts of all parimutuel machines at each race meet. Such one percent shall be paid daily.