New Mexico has a stormy gambling history. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the Native casino craze. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a panel in Nineteen Ninety to discuss an accord with New Mexico Native tribes. When the working group came to an agreement with 2 big local tribes a year later, the Governor declined to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it seemed that Amerindian gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the compact with the Native bands, anti-wagering groups were able to tie the deal up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing the deal, thereby denying the state of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It required the CNA, signed by the New Mexico government, to get the ball rolling on a full compact amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Indian bands. Ten years had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo industry has grown from Nineteen Ninety-Nine. That year, New Mexico not for profit game providers acquired only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo earnings have grown constantly since then. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the owners.
Bingo is clearly beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of operators look for a piece of the pie. Hopefully, the politicians are through batting around gaming as a hot button issue like they did in the 90’s. That’s without doubt wishful thinking.