{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-58.500","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 58.500","heading":"Authority created to acquire Churchill Downs -- Appointment of members -","body":"- Terms of office -- Compensation -- Officers.\n(1) (a) A Churchill Downs authority is hereby created, initially consisting of three (3)\nprominent citizens and residents of Kentucky  to be appointed by the\nGovernor, one (1) of whom is an owner and breeder of Thoroughbred horses,\nand all of whom have no official connection with the government of the\nCommonwealth or Churchill Downs. The foregoing members shall serve as\nsuch until the ac quisition of Churchill Downs, its real estate, franchises,\nrights, privileges and other properties by the authority as an agency of the\nCommonwealth.\n(b) Upon the completion of such acquisition, the then members of the authority\nshall be replaced by other members thereof as follows: nine (9) persons to be\nappointed by the Governor, who are residents or owners of real estate located\nin the Commonwealth and who are of outstanding character, business\nexperience and at least six (6) of whom have knowledge of ra cing and the\naffairs of Churchill Downs, and not less than three (3) of whom shall be\nresidents of Jefferson County. The Governor shall initially appoint nine (9)\npersons having such qualifications, two (2) each for staggered terms ranging\nfrom one (1) to four (4) years as he may designate and one (1) person for a\nterm of four (4) years.\n(c) As such terms expire, the then remaining members of the authority, by\nmajority vote, shall select and submit to the Governor for his consideration the\nnames of three (3 ) qualified nominees to fill each vacancy, one (1) of whom\nmay be a member whose term has expired, from which the Governor shall\nappoint, for a four (4) year term, a member to fill the vacancy.\nAfter all members of the authority appointed as aforesaid hav e been appointed for a\nfour (4) year term following the expiration of their initial staggered terms, the\nprocedure outlined above shall be continued in filling vacancies of members of the\nauthority as they occur through the expiration of terms.\n(d) When an d if any member dies, resigns or becomes incapacitated, the then\nremaining members of the authority, by majority vote, shall select and submit\nto the Governor for his consideration the names of three (3) qualified\nnominees to fill such vacancy, from which the Governor shall appoint a\nmember to fill the vacancy for the unexpired term.\n(e) The members shall be a body corporate constituting a public corporation,\ngovernmental agency and instrumentality of the Commonwealth by the name\nof \"The Churchill Downs Aut hority\" (herein sometimes referred to as the\n\"authority\"), with the perpetual succession and with power in that name to\ncontract and be contracted with, to acquire and convey property, sue and be\nsued, to have and use a corporate seal, and exercise, in add ition to the powers\nand functions specifically stated in KRS 58.500 to 58.590, all of the usual\npowers of private corporations to the extent that the same are not inconsistent\nwith specifically enumerated powers or limitations upon public corporations.\n(2) The members of the authority shall receive no compensation for their services in\nthat capacity, but shall be entitled to reimbursement for all reasonable expenses\nnecessarily incurred in the performance of their duties.\n(3) A majority of the members of th e authority shall constitute a quorum for the\ntransaction of business, and in the absence of a quorum, one (1) or more members\nmay adjourn from time to time until a quorum is convened.\n(4) From among its members, the authority shall annually elect a chairm an and a vice\nchairman, each to serve for a term of one (1) year and until his successor is elected\nand accepts his election.\n(5) The authority shall elect a president, a secretary and a treasurer, each of whom shall\nserve for a term of years fixed by cont ract or an annual term, all terminable for\ncause deemed sufficient by the authority, and each of whom shall receive such\ncompensation as may be determined by the authority. These officers shall not be\nmembers of the authority, but the president and the sec retary shall attend all\nmeetings of the authority. The treasurer shall give bond to the authority and the\nCommonwealth conditioned upon his faithful accounting for all funds coming into\nhis custody from time to time, the same to be in such amount as the au thority may\nprescribe, with corporate surety given by a surety company qualified to do business\nin the Commonwealth, the premium therefor to be paid by the authority. The\nauthority shall establish and maintain an office at Churchill Downs, and the\nsecretary of the authority shall at all times maintain therein complete records of all\nof the authority's actions and proceedings, which shall constitute public records\nopen to inspection at reasonable times.","path":["KRS Chapter 58"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=22856","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:49:13Z","sha256":"0d93085de4ddade3e00e727d03e9860c22c40a4f63109aeeac3185b278838611","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-58.440","next":"us-ky/krs-58.510"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}