Current through Register 1531, September 27, 2024
(1)
Out-of-competition Testing Authorized. The Commission
may, at a reasonable time on any date, take blood, urine or other biologic
samples as authorized by Commission rules from a horse to enhance the ability
of the Commission to enforce its medication and anti-doping rules,
(e.g., the Prohibited List pursuant to ARCI-011-015). The
Commission shall own such samples. 205 CMR 4.53 authorizes only the collection
and testing of samples and does not independently make impermissible the
administration to or presence in any horse of any drug or other substance. A
race day prohibition or restriction of a substance by a Commission rule is not
applicable to an out-of-competition test unless there is an attempt to race the
horse in a manner that violates such rule.
(2)
Horses Eligible to Be
Tested. Any horse that has been engaging in activities related to
competing in horse racing in the jurisdiction may be tested. This includes,
without limitation, any horses that are training outside the jurisdiction to
participate in racing in the jurisdiction and all horses that are training in
the jurisdiction, but excludes weanlings, yearlings and horses no longer
engaged in horse racing (e.g., retired broodmares).
(3) A horse is presumed eligible for
out-of-competition testing if:
(a) It is on
the grounds at a racetrack or training center under the jurisdiction of the
Commission;
(b) It is under the
care or control of a trainer licensed by the Commission;
(c) It is owned by an owner licensed by the
Commission;
(d) It is entered or
nominated to race at a premises licensed by the Commission;
(e) It has raced within the previous 12
months at a premises licensed by the Commission; or
(f) It is nominated to a program based on
racing in the jurisdiction, including without limitation a state thoroughbred
development, breeder's award fund, or standardbred state sires
stakes.
(4) Such
presumptions are conclusive in the absence of evidence that a horse is not
engaged in activities related to competing in horse racing in the
jurisdiction.
(5)
Selection of Horses to Be Tested.
(a) Horses shall be selected for sampling by
a Commission Veterinarian, Executive Director, Equine Medical Director, Steward
or Presiding Judge or a designee of any of the foregoing.
(b) Horses may be selected to be tested at
random, for cause, or as otherwise determined in the discretion of the
Commission.
(c) Collectors shall
for suspicion-less collections of samples abide by a plan that has been
approved by a supervisor not in the field and identifies specific horses or
provides neutral and objective criteria to follow in the field to determine
which horses to sample. Such a supervisor may consider input from persons in
the field during the operation of the plan and select additional horses to be
sampled.
(6)
Cooperation with the Commission.
(a) Licensees of the Commission are required
to cooperate and comply fully with the provisions of 205 CMR 4.53.
(b) Persons who apply for and are granted a
trainer or owner license shall be deemed to have given their consent for access
at such premises as their horse may be found for the purpose of Commission
representatives collecting out-of-competition samples. Licensees shall take any
steps necessary to authorize access by Commission representatives at such
premises.
(c) No other person shall
knowingly interfere with or obstruct a sampling.
(7)
General Procedure for
Collecting Samples.
(a) Samples
shall be taken under the supervision and direction of a person who is employed
or designated by the Commission. All blood samples shall be collected by a
veterinarian licensed in the state where the sample is collected, or by a
veterinary technician who is acting under appropriate supervision of the
veterinarian.
(b) Upon request of a
representative of the Commission, the trainer, owner, or their specified
designee shall provide the location of their horses eligible for
out-of-competition testing.
(c) The
Commission need not provide advance notice before arriving at any location,
whether or not licensed by the Commission, to collect samples.
(d) The trainer, owner, or their specified
designee shall cooperate with the person who takes samples for the Commission,
which cooperation shall include without limitation:
1. Assist in the immediate location and
identification of the horse;
2.
Make the horse available as soon as practical upon arrival of the person who is
responsible for collecting the samples;
3. Provide a stall or other safe location to
collect the samples;
4. Assist the
person who is collecting samples in properly procuring the samples;
and
5. Witness the taking of
samples including sealing of sample collection containers;
6. The management and employees of a licensed
racetrack or training facility at which a horse may be located shall cooperate
fully with a person who is authorized to take samples. The person who collects
samples for the Commission may require that the collection be done at a
specified location on such premises;
7. The Commission, if requested and in its
sole discretion, may permit the trainer, owner, or their specified designee to
present a horse that is located in the jurisdiction, but not at a racetrack or
training center licensed by the Commission, to be sampled at a time and
location designated by the Commission.
(8)
Procedure for Collecting
Samples from Horses Located Outside the Jurisdiction.
(a) The Commission may arrange for the
sampling of an out-of-state horse by the racing Commission or other designated
person in the jurisdiction where the horse is located. Such racing Commission
or other designated person shall follow the relevant provisions of this rule,
including paragraph (a) of subdivision five of this rule.
(b) The test results shall be made available,
for its regulatory use, to each jurisdiction that has participated in the
process of collecting any out-of-competition sample, subject to any
restrictions on public disclosure of test results that apply to the Commission
that selected the horse for sampling.
(c) The Commission, if requested and in its
sole discretion, may permit the trainer or owner instead to transport the horse
into its jurisdiction for sampling at a time and place designated by the
Commission.
(9)
Additional Procedures.
(a) The person who takes samples for the
Commission shall provide identification and disclose the purpose of the
sampling to the trainer or designated attendant of the horse.
(b) A written protocol for the collection of
samples shall be made generally available.
(c) An owner or trainer does not consent to a
search of the premises by making a horse that is not located at a racetrack or
training center available for sampling.
(d) If the trainer or other custodian of a
selected horse refuses or declines to make the horse available for sampling and
the managing owner has previously provided the Commission with a means for the
Commission to give immediate notification to the managing owner in such
situation, then the Commission shall attempt to notify the managing owner and
the eligibility of the horse shall be preserved if the managing owner is able
to make the horse available for immediate sampling. The Commission is not
required to make repeated attempts to notify the managing owner.
(e) The chain of custody record for the
sample (including a split sample where appropriate) shall be maintained and
made available to the trainer, owner, or their designee when a complaint
results from an out-of-competition test.
(10)
Analysis of Collected
Samples.
(a) The Commission may
have out-of-competition samples tested to produce information that may enhance
the ability of the Commission to enforce its medication and anti-doping
rules.
(b) Split sample rules and
procedures for post-race testing shall apply to out-of-competition
testing.
(c) The Commission may use
any remaining sample for research and investigation.
(11)
Penalties for
Non-cooperation.
(a) Willful
failure to make a horse available for sampling or other willfully deceptive
acts or interference in the sampling process shall carry a minimum penalty of a
one year license suspension and referral to the Commission in addition to any
other authorized penalties.
(b) A
selected horse that is not made available for out-of-competition sampling shall
be placed on the Steward's List. The horse shall remain on the Steward's List
for a minimum of 180 days unless the owner can establish extraordinary
mitigating circumstances.
(c) A
selected horse that is presumed eligible for out-of-competition testing shall
be placed on the Steward's List and be ineligible to race in the jurisdiction
for 180 days if the horse is not sampled because the trainer, owner or their
designee asserts that the horse is not engaged in activities related to
competing in horse racing in the jurisdiction. This restriction shall not apply
if the trainer, owner or their designee instead permits voluntarily an
immediate collection of such samples from the horse.
