Here's a link to my full story at spokesman.com on today's Senate committee vote to repeal the 2013 law that authorized betting on "historical horse racing" in Idaho, and led to the installation of slot machine-like "instant racing" machines at three locations in Idaho, including the Greyhound Park Event Center in Post Falls, Les Bois Park near Boise, and the Double Down Betting Bar in Idaho Falls. The panel's vote followed two days of heartfelt testimony from people involved in Idaho's horse industry, pleading with lawmakers not to pass the bill, and saying that the gambling machines are the only thing that will save horse racing in Idaho.

Sen. Bob Nonini, R-Coeur d'Alene, who had proposed competing legislation to limit the "instant racing" machines to three locations and force the Idaho Falls site to move the machines from the downtown bar to the Sandy Downs racetrack, filed a complaint with the Idaho State Lottery charging that the Coeur d'Alene Casino's gaming machines may be illegal, too. The Senate State Affairs Committee had agreed to introduce Nonini's bill, but said it might or might not get a hearing, depending on what happened with the repeal bill.