New Mexico has a bitter gambling background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by the House in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Native casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a panel in 1990 to negotiate a contract with New Mexico Native tribes. When the task force arrived at an accord with two prominent local bands a year later, Governor King refused to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that American Indian betting in New Mexico was a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the contract with the Native tribes, anti-gaming forces were able to tie the contract up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing the accord, thereby denying the government 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 government, to get the process moving on a full accord between the Government of New Mexico and its Amerindian bands. A decade had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo industry has grown from Nineteen Ninety-Nine. In that year, New Mexico charity game providers acquired just $3,048 in revenues. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo earnings have increased steadily since that time. 2005 saw the biggest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the operators.
Bingo is clearly popular in New Mexico. All kinds of operators try for a piece of the pie. Hopefully, the politicos are through batting over gaming as a hot button issue like they did in the 90’s. That’s most likely hopeful thinking.
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