New Mexico has a complex gambling history. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in 1989, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the American Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in Nineteen Ninety to create an accord with New Mexico American Indian tribes. When the task force came to an agreement with two important local bands a year later, Governor King declined to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that Native betting in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the accord with the Native bands, anti-wagering forces were able to tie the deal up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing a deal, thus denying the government of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It required the Compact Negotiation Act, signed by the New Mexico government, to get the ball rolling on a full contract amongst the State of New Mexico and its Indian tribes. A decade had been burned for gaming in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo business has gotten bigger from Nineteen Ninety-Nine. In that year, New Mexico charity game providers brought in just $3,048 in revenues. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed one million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo earnings have grown constantly since then. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the greatest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the owners.
Bingo is apparently popular in New Mexico. All sorts of providers look for a bit of the action. With hope, the politicos are done batting around gambling as a hot button issue like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s most likely hopeful thinking.