New Mexico has a complex gambling background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was signed by Congress in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the Native casino bandwagon. Politics assured that would not be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a task force in 1990 to discuss a compact with New Mexico Native tribes. When the task force came to an accord with two prominent local tribes a year later, Governor King declined to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that Amerindian gaming in New Mexico was a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the contract with the Indian bands, anti-gaming groups were able to hold the deal up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing the accord, therefore costing the state of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It took the CNA, signed by the New Mexico house, to get the ball rolling on a full accord between the State of New Mexico and its American Indian tribes. A decade had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.
The nonprofit Bingo business has increased from 1999. In that year, New Mexico not for profit game providers brought in just $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Not for profit Bingo earnings have increased constantly since that time. 2005 saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the providers.
Bingo is categorically beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of owners try for a slice of the pie. Hopefully, the politicos are done batting over gambling as an important matter like they did in the 90’s. That is most likely wishful thinking.