Audit: Idaho Racing Commission broke law distributing funds

BOISE – State auditors say the Idaho Racing Commission broke the law when it distributed funds collected from now-defunct historical horse racing betting terminals.

Legislative auditors said in a report released Tuesday that the commission gave two horse breeder associations approximately $286,000 in late 2015. However, the commission was supposed to give nearly $72,000 of that money to public schools.

Furthermore, the commission did not have authority at the time to distribute the money. That’s because the law legalizing historical horse racing had been repealed earlier that year, which stripped the commission of its authority to distribute the funds.

Commission officials say they have reached out to the attorney general’s office for guidance.

Known as historical horse racing, the machines allowed bettors to place wages on prior horse races with no identifiable information.