Madeline Auerbach resigns early from CHRB appointment

Madeline Auerbach, a prominent California horsewoman, has resigned from the California Horse Racing Board after a five-year tenure at the regulatory agency, she announced on Wednesday.

The resignation of Auerbach, who was vice chair of the board, leaves two vacancies at the top of the board. Chuck Winner, the former chairman, declined to be reappointed to the board earlier this year and stepped down. In addition, the CHRB’s executive director, Rick Baedeker, 70, has announced that he is retiring sometime next year.

The CHRB has been in the spotlight for most of the year due to scrutiny of horse racing in California brought on by a spate of deaths at Santa Anita in the winter and spring that drew national attention. Auerbach breeds and owns horses that race in California, and there have been calls from Gov. Gavin Newsom for the board to eliminate conflicts of interest.

Auerbach, a native of England who moved to the U.S. as a child, founded a charity in 2007 that focuses on providing aftercare for retired racehorses. She was first appointed to the board in 2014, and her current term on the board would not have expired until Jan. 1, 2022.

“During the decades I have been involved in the horse racing industry, my work has centered on doing what is best for these amazing animals,” Auerbach said, in a statement announcing her resignation. “I want to thank [former] Gov. Jerry Brown for appointing me to the board and allowing me to do so.”

Late last year, Newsom appointed Dr. Gregory Ferraro, the former longtime director of the Veterinary Medicine Center for Equine Health at the University of California, Davis, to the board. This year, Newsom has appointed Oscar Gonzales and Wendy Mitchell. The board is next scheduled to meet on Nov. 21, and Ferraro, who is highly respected for his work on equine health issues, is expected to be appointed chairman at that time.

The CHRB has seven members. Holdovers from the administration of Gov. Jerry Brown include Alex Solis, a former jockey who recently gave up a job as an assistant trainer, and Dennis Alfieri, who turned in his owners’ license earlier this year to eliminate any potential conflicts of interest in matters adjudicated by the regulatory agency.

The CHRB is scheduled to release a report examining the spate of deaths at Santa Anita in December. The report is expected to lead to additional changes at the agency and the rules and regulations that govern racing in the state.