Bingo in New Mexico
New Mexico has a rocky gambling history. When the IGRA was passed by Congress in 1989, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Native casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a panel in Nineteen Ninety to discuss a compact with New Mexico Native tribes. When the task force arrived at an agreement with two important local bands a year later, Governor King refused to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that Indian gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the compact with the Native bands, anti-wagering groups were able to hold the contract up in courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing a deal, therefore denying the government of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It required the Compact Negotiation Act, signed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the ball rolling on a full contract amongst the State of New Mexico and its Native tribes. 10 years had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Native casino Bingo.
The nonprofit Bingo business has gotten bigger since 1999. That year, New Mexico non-profit game providers acquired just $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Not for profit Bingo revenues have grown constantly since then. 2005 saw the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the providers.
Bingo is apparently popular in New Mexico. All types of providers look for a bit of the pie. With hope, the politicos are done batting over gaming as a hot button factor like they did in the 1990’s. That is without doubt wishful thinking.