In a unanimous opinion, the Kentucky Supreme Court made a decision on so called Instant Racing. They ruled that the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission has the legal authority to regulate wagers on previously run horse races presented on electronic gambling machines — but that the legality of the wagers themselves has yet to be established.

The court said the case must go back to Franklin Circuit Court, where it originated, to determine whether “the licensed operation of wagering on historical horse racing as contemplated by (the racetracks and the state) constitutes a parimutuel form of wagering.”

The court also reversed Franklin Circuit Court’s previous finding that the state Department of Revenue could tax betting on instant racing, as the wagering is known.

“We adjudge that the department lacks the statutory authority to tax the money wagered on historical horse racing devices,” the court held.

The Family Foundation, a conservative advocacy group, had sued the state and the racetracks involved to block instant racing from taking effect after the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission approved the regulations in 2010. Franklin Circuit Court ruled that the games were legal, and wagering began in September 2011 at Kentucky Downs in Franklin.

The games later were added at Ellis Park in Henderson, but other racetracks have held off to see whether the Supreme Court would find them legal.

Through Jan. 31, more than $573 million has been wagered on instant racing machines, generating about $8.6 million in taxes.