January 19, 2021
WTBOA Board Members Present: Pam Christopherson, Mary Lou Griffin, Nina Hagen, Dana Halvorson, Dr. Duane Hopp, David Israel, Henry Leong, Petra Lewin, Greg Luce, Debra Pabst, Jennifer Webber.
WTBOA Board Members Absent: Jim Engstrom.
WTBOA Staff Members Present: M. Anne Sweet.
The meeting was called to order at 12:12 pm via Zoom by President Halvorson.
President Halvorson introduced new Board of Trustees member Henry Leong.
Previous Board Minutes: Minutes from the November 23, 2020, meeting were presented and reviewed. Webber moved to approve the minutes as presented. Pabst seconded the motion. The minutes were approved.
Finance: The three unpaid sales horses were finally paid for.
The stallion auction went very well. A secondary auction was held and three more seasons sold. There will be one final week for people to bid on the remaining seasons. The money has not been allocated yet but total was up close to 25 percent from 2020. The board needs to determine when to draw for the stallion incentive bonuses since there is not going to be a live awards banquet this year. [See update below.]
There has been a proposed budget put together, with a few unknown areas. Leong asked if there is money allocated for training and/or additional part-time staffing help. Pabst reported that there wasn’t money available for that at this time, but as COVID restrictions are lifted it may be a possibility. There was discussion about increasing the WaHIP (Washington Homebred Incentive Program) awards.
There has been a proposed budget put together, with a few unknown areas. Leong asked if there is money allocated to hire another staff member. Pabst reported that there wasn’t money available for that at this time, but as COVID restrictions are lifted it may be a possibility. There was discussion about increasing the WaHIP (Washington Homebred Incentive Program) awards.
Northwest Race Series: The money for 2021 is similar to 2020 but with a bigger carryover. The stallion nominees for 2023 are lighter than in the past.
Sales: The final three horses have been paid for. Webber is planning to start a social media campaign to promote the sale in hopes of drawing more horses. Sale date will either be August 17 or 24. Early bird nominations are due March 26, with late nominations accepted until April 23.
Publications: Sweet and staff are working on the stallion register. It is currently available online with the print issue to be finished up soon.
OLD BUSINESS
WHRC/Emerald Downs update: The 2021 meet has been scheduled for May 19 – September 23. There is a bill currently in legislation that would allow the WHRC to get money from the general fund. The difficult part will be getting it through appropriations.
Industry Promotional Video: Lewin reported that she and Sweet met with Wes Petree and he is very willing to help with the production of a new video. Lewin is writing a narrative for the video. The video will be used as a call to action towards the industry’s funding request to the legislature. Sweet reported that the meeting with Petree was informative and productive. The plan is to start over with a new video. Hagen and Leong emphasized the financial contribution the industry makes to the state. Griffin reminded Lewin that the video needed to mention the Class C tracks. Griffin mentioned that the racing industry used to support 4H and the fairs via the handle but has not been able to do this in recent years.
Goals and Initiatives: Nothing to report.
OLD BUSINESS
Awards Banquet: Holding the annual Washington awards celebration on February 27 via a Zoom presentation was discussed. Halvorson suggested forming a committee for the awards banquet and fundraiser auction. No definite date was decided for the auction, however the need for members to start procuring donations was emphasized. Sweet said she would email the board members a list of auction items that have been donated in the past.
It was decided that the winners for the stallion auction incentive would be drawn during the ceremony.
Officer Nominations: Board members were asked to email Sweet their officer nominations. Voting will take place at the next meeting.
An updated contact list for board members was sent out.
Legislative update: Sweet updated the board on SB 5364 which was introduced by Senator Fortunato. The bill would allocate a portion of the sales tax collected on equine-related sales back into the racing industry. The need to voice industry support was discussed in hopes that it will be heard before the Senate Labor Commerce and Tribal Affairs Committee.
Pabst raised the idea of having the B and O taxes that the horse industry pays into be put back into purses.
The next meeting is scheduled for February 16 at 12 pm via Zoom.
Meeting was adjourned at 1:59 pm.
February 16, 2021, Meeting Minutes
Pending approval at next meeting
Next Meeting
Friday, March 19, 2021
