Kentucky-Like Equine Incentive Program In Texas?

House Bill 1881 has passed the Texas House of Representatives and is headed to the Senate.

Kentucky successfully instituted an incentive program for quarter horse breeders in 2007. You can read all about it here.

Almost certainly inspired by the success in Kentucky, Texas State Representative Sid Miller authored HB 1881.

- Here is the history of the bill.
- House Bill 1881 as it was when it passed the House April 23, 2009
- The vote was 144:Y - 1:N and 1 present and not voting

Basically, this bill requires horse breeders to pay "not more than $30" into the program which will then "grant incentive awards" to owners of eligible foals. This could be great for AQHA horse shows since there is currently no compelling monetary reason to show other than improving the desirability of the genetics of winning horses.

But, here are a couple of questions I have for our law makers:

• What happens if breeders do not submit there intention to not participate in the program?

- The bill states that in order to not participate, horse breeders would have to submit a letter to "the department not later than the 30th day before the owner's annual breeding report is due to the applicable breeders' association". This just sounds like a huge headache for many Texas horse breeders.

• Who is the regulating body behind this?

- The Kentucky Quarter Horse Assoc. regulates their incentive program. They have one main prupose - to improve quarter horse activity in KY. What other motivations could Texas government have. I posit that they are probably more concerned with collecting fees than they are the preservation of the horse industry in TX.