SB 1294 California Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

Horse racing: out-of-state thoroughbred races: Japan Cup.

Summary
Existing law authorizes a thoroughbred racing association or fair to distribute the audiovisual signal and accept wagers on the results of out-of-state thoroughbred races conducted in the United States during the calendar period the association or fair is conducting a race meeting, including days on which there is no live racing being conducted by the association or fair, without the consent of the organization that represents horsemen and horsewomen participating in the race meeting and without regard to the amount of purses. Existing law prohibits the total number of thoroughbred races imported by associations or fairs on a statewide basis under these provisions from exceeding 75 races per day on days when live thoroughbred or fair racing is being conducted in the state, with the exception of prescribed races. This bill would exempt from the 75 imported race per day limitation, races imported that are part of the race card of the Japan Cup.
Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2026
Committee Review
Jun 2026
Senate Passage
Apr 2026
Assembly Passage
Governor
Introduced Feb 20, 2026 Last action Aug 3, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

02/20/26 - Introduced SB1294 · 1 edit
MINOR
No substantive policy changes were made between these two versions. The diff reflects a reformatting of the same bill text from the traditional legislative document layout (with line numbers and page headers) to a web-based display format that includes website navigation elements. The actual provisions of SB 1294, which would exempt Japan Cup races from the 75 imported race per day limitation, remain identical in both versions.
TECHNICAL

The bill text was reformatted from a traditional legislative document with line numbers and page headers into a web-based layout that includes site navigation (home, accessibility, FAQ, search, etc.) and a different heading structure. No policy language was added, removed, or altered.

Floor votes · Senate Apr 20, 2026

How they voted

380
Passed · 2 other
Total votes 40
Apr 20, 2026
D Democratic30
29 Yea 1
96% Yea
R Republican10
9 Yea 1
90% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
17
Key actions
3
Committee
4
Jun 25, 2026
Lower · Passed
From committee: Do pass. Ordered to consent calendar. (Ayes 19. Noes 0.) (June 24).
lower
May 4, 2026
Committee
Referred to Com. on G.O.
lower
Apr 20, 2026
Upper · Passed
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 38. Noes 0. Page 3950.) Ordered to the Assembly.
upper
Apr 14, 2026
Upper · Passed
From committee: Do pass. Ordered to consent calendar. (Ayes 15. Noes 0. Page 3866.) (April 14).
upper
Mar 4, 2026
Committee
Referred to Com. on G.O.
upper
Feb 20, 2026
Introduced
Introduced. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.
upper
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Susan Rubio
Susan Rubio
DDemocratic
CA
22