(1) Every initial application for a license to hold race meets under this article 32 shall be made under oath and shall be filed with the commission on or before a day fixed by the commission and shall set forth the time, the place, and the number of days the meet shall continue; the kind of racing proposed to be conducted; the full name and address of the applicant and, if a corporation, the names and addresses of all of its officers and directors and all of the holders of each class of its stock and the amount of stock of each class so owned by each stockholder; the location of the racetrack and whether the racetrack is owned or leased; the names and residences of the owners of all property leased by the applicant; a statement of the assets and liabilities of the applicant; a description of the qualifications and experience of the applicant if an individual or of its officers and directors if a corporation; a full disclosure of all holding or intermediary companies associated with the applicant, as well as their shareholders, all contracts that relate to the race meet, audited balance sheets of corporate applicants, excluding nonprofit associations, and the terms and conditions of all contracts by which the applicant has received credit; a description of the land uses within a radius of two miles of the establishment in which the race meet is proposed to be conducted; and the incidental information as the rules of the commission may require in connection with the application. (2) Upon the filing of the application, the commission shall fix a date for a hearing on the application, and the applicant shall give public notice of the time and place of the hearing by publication in one issue of a daily or weekly newspaper of general circulation in the area in which it is proposed to conduct the race meet and by posting on the site of the proposed race meet a notice, in form and size to be determined by the commission, that the application has been filed and the date and place of the hearing thereon. At the time and place mentioned in the notice, the commission shall conduct a public hearing at which evidence for and against the granting of the application may be presented. (3) Except as otherwise limited by the provisions of this article 32, in considering an application for a license under this section, the commission may give consideration to the number of licenses already granted, and to the location of tracks previously licensed, and to the sentiments and character of the community in which the proposed race meets are to be conducted, and to the ability, character, and experience of each individual applicant or the officers and directors of each corporate applicant. The commission may require of every applicant for a license to hold a race meet, except a public nonprofit association, nonprofit corporation, or nonprofit fair, including the Colorado state fair and all county fairs, who has not, within five years prior to making an application for a license to hold a race meet, operated a race meet in the county, city, or city and county in which it is proposed to hold the race meet, a recommendation in writing of the board of county commissioners of the county in the event the race meet is to be held in unincorporated areas of the county or of the governing board of a city or city and county if the proposed race meet is to be held within a city or city and county. The commission may take the recommendation into consideration before granting or refusing the license. The commission may deny a license to operate a new racetrack to a person who is already licensed to operate a racetrack within this or any other state if, in the opinion of the commission, the granting of the license would discourage legitimate competition from other qualified applicants. The commission shall investigate any applicant and shall require the applicant to pay the actual cost of investigating the application as part of the fees and costs imposed pursuant to section 44-32-506. The applicant shall advance the money necessary for the investigation to the commission, and the commission shall return any unused portion of the money to the applicant at the conclusion of the commission's investigation. The advance of the money may either be made directly to the commission or the money may be deposited into escrow in a manner approved by the commission. (4) The commission may grant or refuse licenses to conduct race meets under this article 32 as it determines, from the application, the character, financial ability, and experience of each individual applicant or the officers and directors of each corporate applicant, the sentiments of the community and the character of the area wherein it is proposed to conduct the race meets, and the evidence presented at the hearing, to be for the best interests of the state, the racing industry, and the area in which it is proposed to conduct the race meets. (5) The commission has discretion to grant or deny a race meet license if it finds that any applicant has, or any of the directors, officers, or original stockholders of a corporate applicant have, violated any of the provisions of this article 32 or any rules of the commission or failed to pay any of the sums required under this article 32. (6) Every license issued under this article 32 shall specify the number of days the licensed race meet shall continue and the number of races per day. No license shall be granted to any individual who is not a bona fide resident of Colorado nor to any foreign corporation. Every applicant shall agree that, if granted a license under this article 32, the applicant will not thereafter sell, mortgage, or otherwise pledge or dispose of any of the assets listed and described on the application for a license or a renewal license without thirty days' prior notice to the commission, which may approve or disapprove the disposition of assets upon good cause shown. The charter of all corporate applicants shall contain a provision that, when a cumulative ten percent or more of the voting stock of the corporation is to be sold, mortgaged, or otherwise pledged or transferred, thirty days' prior notice shall be given to the commission. The corporation shall pay an investigation fee to the commission as part of the fees and costs imposed pursuant to section 44-32-506. The commission shall approve or disapprove of the disposition of the stock, upon good cause shown, within ninety days of the filing of a completed application for transfer. The commission has the power to ascertain if any capital stock of any corporate applicant or licensee is held with the intent to mislead or deceive the commission for an undisclosed principal. The involvement of an undisclosed principal shall be grounds for the denial, suspension, or revocation of a license. (7) Upon petition by the licensee and a finding by the commission that it is impossible or impractical for a licensee, because of fire or act of God or other unforeseeable emergency not caused or participated in by the licensee, to conduct a race meet upon the dates allocated or upon a racetrack designated by the commission to the licensee, other dates and locations may be substituted and granted to the licensee. A licensee so petitioning may be granted the right to lease and utilize any other licensee's facilities for the term of the petitioning licensee's annual permit or any portion thereof, but the grant shall not be construed to allow any licensee more days of racing in any year than are prescribed by this article 32. (8) When conducting investigations pursuant to subsections (3) and (6) of this section, to the extent possible, the commission shall utilize investigative information of other state racing jurisdictions. The commission may investigate an existing licensee who is seeking to acquire ownership of another existing license to conduct race meets.
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