By Rachel O’Brien Deputy Policy Editor, OpenTheBooks.com 

The City of Baltimore paid $1,155 for City Council President Nick Mosby to attend two premiere horse races in May at the Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore. 

Mosby, whose taxpayer-funded salary is $131,798, attended the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes on Friday, May 20, and 147th Preakness Stakes on Saturday, May 21, according to an invoice from Maryland Jockey Club. 

OpenTheBooks.com received a copy of the invoice through a Maryland Public Information Act request. 

Costs for the two-day events included $30 and $60 for general admission, $40 and $170 for VIP parking, and $285 and $570 for food and drinks in the Terrace Dining Room, for a total tab of $1,155. 

A spokesperson for Mosby didn’t respond to questions about whether his attendance was related to city business and why taxpayer funds were used to pay. 

The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held the third Saturday in May at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore. 

Preakness is the second leg of the Triple Crown of American horse racing, and takes place two weeks after the Kentucky Derby and three weeks before the Belmont Stakes in New York. 

A weekend affair, the Black-Eyed Susan Stakes took place on Friday ahead of the 147th Preakness Stakes on Saturday. Based on the invoice from Maryland Jockey Club, Mosby attended both events. 

An article by The Grio reported seeing “inside the Chalet VIP suite … luminaries and leaders from Baltimore’s political elite like Mayor Brandon Scott, State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby, and her husband, Baltimore City Council President Nick Mosby.” 

Our open records request only covered City Council spending with the Maryland Jockey Club, so it’s unclear whether taxpayer dollars were used to pay for Scott’s and Marilyn Mosby’s attendance. Neither official responded to our questions about how their attendance was paid for.

 

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