New Mexico has a rocky gambling past. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Amerindian casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a working group in 1990 to discuss a compact with New Mexico American Indian tribes. When the working group came to an accord with two prominent local tribes a year later, the Governor refused to sign the bargain. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that Amerindian wagering in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the contract with the Indian tribes, anti-gambling forces were able to hold the deal up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing the deal, therefore costing the government of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It took the CNA, passed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the ball rolling on a full contract between the State of New Mexico and its Amerindian bands. A decade had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, which includes American Indian casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo business has increased since 1999. In that year, New Mexico charity game owners brought in just $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed one million dollars in revenues in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have grown steadily since that time. 2005 saw the biggest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the owners.
Bingo is certainly beloved in New Mexico. All kinds of operators try for a slice of the action. Hopefully, the politicos are through batting over gaming as an important matter like they did back in the 90’s. That is probably hopeful thinking.
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