New Mexico has a complex gaming background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was signed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it looked like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in 1990 to draft an accord with New Mexico Amerindian tribes. When the panel came to an agreement with two big local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the bargain. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it seemed that American Indian wagering in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the compact with the Amerindian bands, anti-gaming groups were able to hold the deal up in courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing the compact, thereby denying the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It required the CNA, passed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the ball rolling on a full compact amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Indian tribes. 10 years had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo business has grown since Nineteen Ninety-Nine. That year, New Mexico charity game providers acquired just $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have increased constantly since that time. Two Thousand and Five saw the greatest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the owners.
Bingo is certainly popular in New Mexico. All types of providers look for a slice of the pie. Hopefully, the politicians are done batting over gambling as a hot button issue like they did back in the 90’s. That’s without doubt hopeful thinking.