New Mexico has a complex gaming background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico might 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 assembled a panel in Nineteen Ninety to draft a compact with New Mexico Amerindian bands. When the task force came to an agreement with 2 important local bands a year later, Governor King declined to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that Native gaming in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the contract with the American Indian bands, anti-gambling forces were able to tie the accord up in courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing the deal, thus denying the government 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 government, to get the ball rolling on a full compact between the Government of New Mexico and its Amerindian tribes. A decade had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, which includes American Indian casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo business has grown from 1999. In that year, New Mexico non-profit game providers acquired only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed one million dollars in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo earnings have grown steadily since that time. Two Thousand and Five saw the greatest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the operators.
Bingo is clearly beloved in New Mexico. All types of operators look for a slice of the action. With hope, the politicians are through batting around gaming as an important matter like they did back in the 90’s. That’s probably hopeful thinking.