New Mexico has a bitter gambling history. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the Native casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that would not be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a working group in Nineteen Ninety to discuss an accord with New Mexico Native tribes. When the panel arrived at an accord with 2 big local bands a year later, the Governor refused to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it appeared that Indian betting in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the compact with the Amerindian tribes, anti-wagering groups were able to hold the deal up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing the accord, therefore denying the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It took the Compact Negotiation Act, signed by the New Mexico house, to get the ball rolling on a full contract between the State of New Mexico and its Indian tribes. A decade had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, which includes American Indian casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo business has increased since 1999. That year, New Mexico charity game owners brought in only $3,048 in revenues. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded a million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo revenues have increased steadily since that time. Two Thousand and Five saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the owners.
Bingo is categorically favored in New Mexico. All types of providers try for a bit of the action. With hope, the politicos are done batting over gaming as a hot button matter like they did back in the 90’s. That is most likely wishful thinking.