N.Y. Racing, Pari-Mutuel Wagering and Breeding Law § 238

§ 238. Disposition of pari-mutuel pools of the franchised corporation;\npercentage payable to state as a tax; authority of counties or certain\ncities to impose a tax. 1. (a) The franchised corporation authorized\nunder this chapter to conduct pari-mutuel betting at a race meeting or\nraces run thereat shall distribute all sums deposited in any pari-mutuel\npool to the holders of winning tickets therein, provided such tickets\nare presented for payment before April first of the year following the\nyear of their purchase, less an amount that shall be established and\nretained by such franchised corporation of between twelve to seventeen\npercent of the total deposits in pools resulting from on-track regular\nbets, and fourteen to twenty-one percent of the total deposits in pools\nresulting from on-track multiple bets and fifteen to twenty-five percent\nof the total deposits in pools resulting from on-track exotic bets and\nfifteen to thirty-six percent of the total deposits in pools resulting\nfrom on-track super exotic bets. The retention rate to be established is\nsubject to the prior approval of the commission. Such rate may not be\nchanged more than once per calendar quarter to be effective on the first\nday of the calendar quarter. "Exotic bets" and "multiple bets" shall\nhave the meanings set forth in section five hundred nineteen of this\nchapter. "Super exotic bets" shall have the meaning set forth in section\nthree hundred one of this chapter. For purposes of this section, a "pick\nsix bet" shall mean a single bet or wager on the outcomes of six races.\nOut of the amount so retained there shall be paid by such franchised\ncorporation to the commissioner of taxation and finance, as a reasonable\ntax by the state for the privilege of conducting pari-mutuel betting on\nthe races run at the race meetings held by such franchised corporation,\nwhich tax is hereby levied, in the applicable percentage set forth in\nsubdivision one of section one hundred thirty-six of this chapter.\nPayment to the New York state thoroughbred breeding and development fund\nby such franchised corporation shall be one-half of one percent of total\ndaily on-track pari-mutuel pools resulting from regular, multiple and\nexotic bets and three percent of super exotic bets and for the period\nApril first, two thousand one through December thirty-first, two\nthousand twenty-seven, such payment shall be seven-tenths of one percent\nof regular, multiple and exotic pools.\n (b) An amount equal to fifty percent of any compensation received by a\nfranchised corporation from simulcasting or from wagering conducted\noutside the United States or outside New York state and within the\nUnited States shall be distributed to purses, except with respect to\nsuch compensation received from Connecticut which shall be computed as a\npercentage of wagering handle in a manner approved by the commission.\n (c) An amount equal to fifty percent of any compensation received by\nthe franchised corporation from simulcasting or from wagering conducted\noutside the United States shall be distributed to purses.\n (d) (i) The franchised corporation shall conduct a race meeting at\nAqueduct racetrack during the months of December, January, February,\nMarch and April. For purposes of this paragraph such race meeting shall\nconsist of not less than ninety-five days of racing unless otherwise\nagreed to in writing by the New York Thoroughbred Breeders Inc., the New\nYork thoroughbred horsemen's association (or such other entity as is\ncertified and approved pursuant to section two hundred twenty-eight of\nthis article) and approved by the commission. Not later than May first\nof each year, the commission shall determine whether a race meeting at\nAqueduct racetrack consisted of the number of days as required by this\nsubparagraph. In determining the number of race days, cancellation of a\nrace day because of an act of God that the commission approves or\nbecause of weather conditions that are unsafe or hazardous that the\ncommission approves shall not be construed as a failure to conduct a\nrace day. Additionally, cancellation of a race day because of\ncircumstances beyond the control of such franchised corporation for\nwhich the commission gives approval shall not be construed as a failure\nto conduct a race day.\n (ii) Such franchised corporation shall pay to the commission as a\nregulatory fee, which fee is hereby levied, six-tenths of one percent of\nthe total daily on-track pari-mutuel pools of such franchised\ncorporation.\n 2. a. Subject to the provisions of this section the payment of such\nstate tax shall be made to the commissioner of taxation and finance on\nthe last business day of each month and shall cover taxes due for the\nperiod from the sixteenth day of the preceding month through the\nfifteenth day of the current month provided, however, that such payments\nrequired to be made on March thirty-first shall include all taxes due\nand accruing through the last full week of racing in March of the\ncurrent year or as otherwise determined by the commissioner, and shall\nbe accompanied by a report under oath, showing such information as the\ncommissioner may require. A penalty of five percent and interest at the\nrate of one percent per month from the date the report is required to be\nfiled to the date of the payment of the tax shall be payable in case any\ntax imposed by this section is not paid when due. If the commissioner\ndetermines that any moneys received by the commissioner under this\nsection were paid in error, the commissioner may cause the same to be\nrefunded without interest out of any moneys collected thereunder,\nprovided an application therefor is filed with the commissioner within\none year from the time the erroneous payment was made. Such taxes,\ninterest and penalties when collected, after the deduction of refunds of\ntaxes erroneously paid, shall be paid by the commissioner into the\ngeneral fund of the state treasury.\n b. The balance of the retained percentage of such pool shall be held\nby such franchised corporation for its corporate purposes, except as\nprovided in paragraph c of this subdivision.\n c. An amount equal to five and ninety-four hundredths percent of the\ntotal pools resulting from on-track regular bets and an amount equal to\nfive and ninety-four hundredths percent of the total pools resulting\nfrom on-track multiple and exotic bets, and twelve percent of the total\npools resulting from super exotic bets shall be used exclusively for\npurses (including stakes, premiums and prizes) awarded in races\nconducted by such franchised corporation. Any portion of such percent\nnot so used during any year shall be so used during the following year.\n 3. No county, city, town, village or other political subdivision of\nthe state may impose, levy or collect a tax on admission fees or tickets\nof admission, on wagers made by patrons in the form of purchases of\npari-mutuel tickets or upon such tickets, on pari-mutuel pools, on\nbreaks, on dividends or payments made to winning bettors, or on revenue\nretained by the franchised corporation, except as provided in former\narticle two-B of the general city law, and as otherwise provided in this\nchapter.\n