WASHINGTON (AP) — A senator is seeking a national ban on performance-enhancing drugs in horse racing, calling for a federal role in a sport that lacks uniform standards.
Under the legislation by Sen. Tom Udall, any person with three violations of the ban would be permanently banned from horse racing. A horse that tests positive for performance-enhancing drugs three times would receive a two-year ban.
The bill comes three years after some in the industry urged the federal government to get involved. One prominent horse owner pleaded at a hearing for Congress to help.
Udall, a New Mexico Democrat, plans to unveil the bill next week, ahead of the Kentucky Derby. The Associated Press obtained a draft of the legislation Thursday.
