Md. Code Regs. 09.10.01.07

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 22, November 1, 2024

Section 09.10.01.07 - Claiming

A. Except as provided in §A-1 of this regulation, in claiming races a horse is subject to claim for its entered price by:

(1) A licensed owner;

(2) An individual authorized to claim in behalf of a registered stable or other multiple ownership entity; or

(3) A registered authorized agent in behalf of a person listed in §A(1) or (2) of this regulation.

A-1. In claiming races a horse is not subject to claim if:

(1) The horse has not started for a minimum of 120 days;

(2) The last start of the horse was a claiming race;

(3) The horse is entered for a claiming price not less than the claiming price of its last start;

(4) For the first race following the period specified in §A-1(1) of this regulation, the horse is declared ineligible to be claimed at the time of entry; and

(5) The program clearly designates that the horse is ineligible to be claimed.

B. Eligibility to Claim.

(1) Except as provided in §B(2) and (3) of this regulation, to be eligible to claim, a licensed owner, registered stable, or other multiple ownership entity shall designate, as the person who will assume control and responsibility of a claimed horse, a licensed trainer who has been assigned stabling on grounds under the jurisdiction of the Commission.

(2) A licensed owner, registered stable, or other multiple ownership entity that does not have a licensed trainer with assigned stabling on grounds under the jurisdiction of the Commission is eligible to claim only to replace a horse lost to a claim at a track under the jurisdiction of the Commission.

(3) A trainer who is also licensed as an owner, and whose trainer's license is suspended, is not eligible to claim a horse as an owner during the term of the suspension.

C. A person shall not be eligible to claim more than one horse in a race, either directly or through another.

D. A valid claim shall:

(1) Be in writing on a form provided by the association;

(2) Be in the name of a person qualified to claim a horse;

(3) Be signed by the person, or the agent of the person, in whose name the claim is made;

(4) Contain the name of the horse to be claimed in a manner sufficient to avoid confusion with the name of another horse in the race;

(5) Name the trainer who will assume control and responsibility of the horse to be claimed;

(6) Be for the amount printed in the program as the claiming price of the horse;

(7) Be enclosed in a sealed envelope, provided by the association, which shall contain no identifying marks on its outside other than the number of the race in which the claimed horse is to participate;

(8) Be deposited in a lock box of the claims clerk at least 10 minutes before the post time for the race in which the claimed horse is to participate; and

(9) Be supported by funds on deposit at the association in the name of the claimant in an amount sufficient to cover the cost of the claim, any taxes to which the claim may be subject, and 1.5 percent of the claiming price, which shall be paid to the horse retirement program approved by the organization representing the majority of horsemen.

E. After the deadline for entering a claim has passed, the stewards or their designee shall:

(1) Open the claim envelopes for the race;

(2) If the same trainer is named on more than one claim form, conduct a drawing of those forms, which results in the trainer being named on only one claim form;

(3) After ascertaining compliance with §§D and E of this regulation, if there is more than one valid claim for a horse, conduct a drawing to determine the successful claimant; and

(4) Notify the Racing Secretary of the identity of the successful claimant and the horse claimed.

F. The stewards may require a person who submits a claim for a horse in a claiming race to make an affidavit declaring that the person is claiming the horse for the person's own account or for the account of another as the registered authorized agent for that person.

G. If the stewards determine that a horse was improperly entered in a claiming race, they may:

(1) Void a claim of the horse;

(2) Order the claiming monies, including all taxes, refunded to the claimant through the Clerk of the Course, the horsemen's bookkeeper, or otherwise; and

(3) Order the return of the horse to the original owner.

H. Except as provided in §H-1 or H-2 of this regulation, unless there is a violation of this regulation by the claimant, or the stewards determine that a horse was improperly entered:

(1) The claim is irrevocable and the claimed horse becomes the property of the successful claimant from the time the horse is a starter; and

(2) A purse earned in the race from which a horse is claimed is the property of the owner from whom the horse is claimed.

H-1. A claim shall be voided if a horse is a starter and the horse:

(1) Dies on the racetrack; or

(2) Suffers an injury which requires the euthanasia of the horse, as determined by a State veterinarian, while the horse is on the racetrack.

H-2. A claim is voidable at the sole discretion of the new owner, for a period of 1 hour after the race is made official, for any horse that:

(1) Is vanned off the track after the race at the discretion of the State Veterinarian; or

(2) Is sent to the detention barn and observed to be lame by the State Veterinarian.

I. After the race has been run, the successful claimant shall present verification of the claim by the Racing Secretary to the person accompanying the claimed horse.

J. A properly claimed horse shall be delivered to the successful claimant in the:

(1) Paddock, immediately after the running of the race, if the horse is not subject to post-race testing; or

(2) Detention area, after the horse has undergone post-race testing, if the horse is subject to that testing.

K. If a trainer refuses to deliver a horse that has been claimed to the successful claimant when verification of the claim is presented in accordance with §I of this regulation, the:

(1) Trainer is subject to sanctions; and

(2) Claimed horse shall be disqualified from participating in further racing until delivery is made.

L. In claiming races, the following acts, or an attempt to commit the following acts, are prohibited:

(1) An agreement to claim, or not to claim, a horse belonging to another owner;

(2) Preventing an owner from:

(a) Claiming a horse, or

(b) Legitimately running a horse in a race;

(3) The claiming of a horse by:

(a) The owner of the horse,

(b) Another person for the account of the owner of the horse, or

(c) One owner from another if the trainer of the horse to be claimed trains a horse owned by the entity making the claim; and

(4) The entry of a horse if there is:

(a) A lien or other encumbrance affecting the transfer of title to the horse unless there is written permission from the holder of the lien or other encumbrance, attached to the horse's foal certificate, allowing the horse to be entered in a claiming race,

(b) An ownership dispute, or

(c) One owner from another if the trainer of the horse to be claimed trains a horse owned by the entity making the claim; and

M. If a horse is claimed:

(1) For a period of 30 days from the day of the claim, the horse may start in a claiming race only for a claiming price at least 25 percent more than the claiming price for which it was claimed;

(2) The horse may not be sold or transferred to anyone, wholly or in part, for a period of 30 days from the day of the claim, except:

(a) In a claiming race, or

(b) When the horse is entered and starts for a claiming price which would cause the horse to become ineligible to be entered at Laurel or Pimlico;

(3) Unless reclaimed, the horse may not remain in the same stable or under the control or management of its former owner or trainer for a period of 30 days from the day of the claim;

(4) It may not race outside of Maryland for a period of 60 days from the day of the claim except:

(a) To participate in a stakes race;

(b) To participate in a claiming race for a price which would cause the horse to become ineligible to be entered at Laurel or Pimlico; or (c) During the scheduled absence of a live thoroughbred race meet in Maryland for at least 15 days.

N. For the purposes of §M of this regulation, the day of the claim does not count in computing the time restrictions.

O. The stewards shall report action taken by them, in reference to a violation of this regulation, to the Commission which may, in its discretion, take any further action it considers appropriate.

P. A horse which was claimed in another state and entered to race in this State remains subject to the conditions of the claiming regulation in the state where the claim was made until those conditions expire.

Q. Notwithstanding information printed in the program or other racing publications, the claimant is solely responsible for determining the horse's:

(1) Age;

(2) Breeding;

(3) Physical condition;

(4) Racing record; and

(5) Sex.

R. National Steeplechase and Hunt Association.

(1) At race meetings conducted by the Cecil County Breeders' Fair, Inc., claiming races shall be run under the conditions of the Rules of the National Steeplechase and Hunt Association, Part XXIII, Rule 203, N.B., as amended 1972.

(2) For the purpose of defining a "meeting" as it applies to the eligibility of an owner to make a claim, all meetings sanctioned by the Hunts Committee of the N. S. & H. A. conducted between January 1st and June 30th of any one calendar year shall be deemed to be "one meeting", and all meetings conducted between July 1st and December 31st of any one calendar year shall be deemed to be "one meeting".

(3) Each person desiring to make a claim, unless he has the amount to his credit with the National Steeplechase and Hunt Association, shall first deposit at the office of the National Steeplechase and Hunt Association the whole amount of the claim in cash, for which a receipt will be given; but any owner who is eligible to make a claim may do so without having the necessary funds on deposit as outlined above, provided that he delivers to an authorized representative of the National Steeplechase and Hunt Association at the race course not later than 30 minutes before post time of the 1st race of the meeting at which the claim is to be made, funds which are sufficient to cover the whole amount of the claim. These funds shall be in the form of a cashier's, treasurer's, or certified check only.

(4) A horse which has been claimed may not race, other than at race meetings sanctioned by the Hunts Committee of the National Steeplechase and Hunt Association, until after the close of the meeting at which it was claimed, or for a period of 30 days, whichever comes first.

Md. Code Regs. 09.10.01.07

Regulation .07 amended as an emergency provision effective December 18, 1984 (12:1 Md. R. 13); emergency status expired April 9, 1985 (Emergency provisions are temporary and not printed in COMAR)
Regulation .07A amended effective March 6, 1989 (16:4 Md. R. 495)
Regulation .07N amended as an emergency provision effective August 18, 1986 (13:17 Md. R. 1920); emergency status expired September 5, 1986; amended permanently effective October 20, 1986 (13:21 Md. R. 2320); October 18, 1987 (14:19 Md. R. 2060); October 16, 1989 (16:20 Md. R. 2180)
Regulation .07N-1 adopted effective October 18, 1987 (14:19 Md. R. 2060)
Regulation .07S and V repealed effective October 19, 1987 (14:21 Md. R. 2222)
Regulation .07U: 9/1/73 (amended)
Regulation .07Z: 7/21/76 (3:11 Md. R. 595)
Regulation .07AA: 6/22/72
Regulation .07BB adopted effective January 1, 1978 (4:26 Md. R. 2023)
Regulation .07 amended effective April 22, 1985 (12:8 Md. R. 802)
Regulation .07 amended effective April 11, 1994 (21:7 Md. R. 520); April 21, 2008 (35:8 Md. R. 804)
Regulation .07 amended as an emergency provision effective May 17, 2007 (34:12 Md. R. 1066); emergency status expired November 13, 2007; amended permanently effective January 14, 2008 (35:1 Md. R. 17)
Regulation .07 amended as an emergency provision effective April 4, 2013 (40:9 Md. R. 788); amended permanently effective July 22, 2013 (40:14 Md. R. 1173)
Regulation .07B amended effective January 6, 1992 (18:26 Md. R. 2829); May 17, 1999 (26:10 Md. R. 797)
Regulation .07D amended effective November 20, 1994 (21:23 Md. R. 1932)
Regulation .07H amended as an emergency provision effective December 1, 2013 (40:26 Md. R. 2161); amended permanently effective March 17, 2014 (41:5 Md. R. 342)
Regulation .07H amended as an emergency provision effective September 2, 2014 (41:18 Md. R. 1007)
Regulation .07H-1 adopted as an emergency provision effective December 1, 2013 (40:26 Md. R. 2161); adopted permanently effective March 17, 2014 (41:5 Md. R. 342)
Regulation .07H-2 adopted as an emergency provision effective September 2, 2014 (41:18 Md. R. 1007)
Regulation .07M amended effective October 9, 1995 (22:20 Md. R. 1542)
Regulation .07M amended as an emergency provision effective September 2, 1997 (24:19 Md. R. 1335); emergency status expired December 1, 1997; amended permanently effective January 12, 1998 (25:1 Md. R. 15)
Regulation .07N amended as an emergency provision effective July 23, 1992 (19:16 Md. R. 1466); emergency status extended at 20:2 Md. R. 108; adopted permanently effective March 15, 1993 (20:5 Md. R. 513)
Regulation .07 amended effective 41:23 Md. R. 1371, eff.11/24/2014; amended effective 44:8 Md. R. 401, eff. 4/24/2017; amended effective 45:8 Md. R. 419, eff. 4/23/2018; amended effective 48:8 Md. R. 308, eff. 4/19/2021; amended effective 48:16 Md. R. 631, eff. 8/9/2021; amended effective 50:24 Md. R. 1041, eff. 1/1/2024