An editorial from the Charleston Daily Mail
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s state backing of the dog racing industry could get a second look during this year’s legislative session.
It’s high time.
Dogs and horses used to be the only action at West Virginia’s racetracks. In the 1990s, the state agreed to let the state’s four tracks add casinos to rev up revenue.
Since then, the casinos have outpaced the dogs.
That’s the trend across the nation, where betting on greyhound racing — both trackside and at remote simulcast parlors — has plummeted from a peak of $3.5 billion in 1991 to $665 million in 2012, according to The Washington Post.
Meanwhile, West Virginia was set to subsidize thoroughbred and greyhound racing purse funds by about $80 million this budget year.
