Apparently Republican Indiana Governor Mike Pence's office feels there's far better uses for the subsidy money being given to racing (like maybe helping pay for his proposed income tax cut?) and has quietly proposed a budget that would eliminate the welfare for racing. (And no doubt all the good solid conservative horsemen in Indiana voted for this guy, too. The nerve.)
A columnist for the Indianapolis Star agrees whole heartedly, in a call to end the subsidies. It's food for thought, anyhow, and informative in some respects. For instance, I wasn't aware Indiana horsemen had been living on the welfare dole for quite so many years.
"According to a recent state inspector general’s report, Indiana gave $427 million in subsidies to the industry from 1993 to 2011. Yes, all that to support an industry that should be able to stand on its own four feet by now. All that during periods in which lawmakers made cuts to education and scrimped to build surpluses and fund more serious economic development efforts."
http://www.indystar.com/article/20130129/NEWS08/301300305/Matthew-Tully-Let-s-end-boondoggle-horse-racing-subsidy-Indiana 
