Ohio 'simulcast in a box?'

The Ohio Senate Finance committee on Tuesday heard testimony in favor of allowing “Instant Racing” machines at the seven racetracks in the state. Four proponents of the recently-introduced bill spoke before the committee; opponents did not testify at the hearing.

The “Instant Racing” machines are already allowed in Arkansas and Oregon. Players place their bet according to odds shown and then watch an archived race. More than 60,000 archived races are randomly selected and would be viewed alongside a spinning reel similar to a slot machine. The odds are based on the winning percentages of the horses, jockeys and trainers, with a proposed payout of 88 percent.

“It certainly looks like a slot machine because it’s a box,” Sen. Steve Stivers was quoted as saying afterward in Wednesday’s The Columbus Dispatch. “But this is a horse race. It’s nothing more than a simulcast in a box.”

Ohio voters defeated a bill last November that would have allowed slot machines at the racetracks. The “Instant Racing” proposal has reportedly gained bipartisan support in both the Ohio House and Senate.

“I’m trying to do what I can to improve the horse-racing industry in Ohio,” added Stivers. “The horse industry is in real trouble.”

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