(WXYZ) - All bets could be off Thursday for the state's horse racing industry. The ponies may be left in the paddock by the political hay of Michigan's budget crisis.
Horses and drivers could be running one of their final races in Michigan, and that's because by Thursday night, state funding needed to keep the racetracks open is expected to end.
Thousands of people work at the tracks and in supporting jobs, and if the lights go out, the jobs go with them.
"You're talking about 12,000 people in the state of Michigan could be out of a job," said Sam Reichard, manager of Northville Downs, "just because of this budget crunch that we are in."
Reichard has managed Northville Downs for 38 years. John Bergman has been placing bets there even longer.
"I think it's terrible," said Bergman. "There's a lot of people that come to this track. Been comin' there for years."
The governor has vetoed the money for horse racing, saying she believes the business should be self-supporting. But state funding is used to pay auditors who monitor the simulcasting of races.
There is no question it's coming down to the wire, but there is a bill that still needs action in the senate that would replace the vetoed money, and that may be horse racing's last hope in Michigan.
