December vote set for new racetrack

The New Mexico Racing Commission is scheduled to decide by early December whether to issue a license for a new horse-racing track and, if so, which applicant wins the license.

The license for the track and accompanying slot-machine casino is one of the final plums that the administration of Gov. Susana Martinez has to hand out before she leaves office at the end of the year.

The commission has scheduled a meeting Nov. 15 for a possible vote on whether to proceed with the issuance of the license. It is awaiting completion of a feasibility study on a new track, which would be the state’s sixth.

Four of the five existing tracks requested the study because of concerns about the impacts that another track would have on their operations, as well as the horse-racing industry in New Mexico.

If the Racing Commission decides to move forward with issuing the new license, it has tentatively scheduled a Nov. 28 hearing for final presentations by applicants and comments from Native American tribes with casinos.

The commission is required by its rules to “carefully and seriously” consider the views of gambling tribes prior to issuing a new license, including any concerns about potential economic harm to the tribes’ casinos.

The Racing Commission has tentatively scheduled a meeting Dec. 6 to make a final decision on the track license.

Three groups have filed competing applications to build a track and casino