Brooks Law Digest: Horses

The Chicago City Council has passed an ordinance which will effectively ban the use of horse carriages beginning in 2021. The city will no longer issue new licenses for horse-drawn carriages, and current licenses will not be renewed.

New York Assembly Bill 9989, if enacted, would prohibit the slaughter of horses used in race horsing operations, where violations are subject to civil fines and the revocation of any state gambling license. The bill would also require that all race horses be microchipped. The companion legislation is Senate Bill 7719.

The Race Horse Recovery Act of 2019 (H.R. 4786) would reinstate a previous three-year depreciation schedule for the purchase of racehorses as permanent. The change would allow purchasers of race horses to spread out that costly purchase over several years for tax purposes.