New Mexico Bingo
New Mexico has a stormy gaming background. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in 1989, it looked like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the American Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a working group in 1990 to discuss a compact with New Mexico Amerindian bands. When the task force came to an accord with 2 important local bands a year later, the Governor 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 gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the contract with the Native tribes, 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 the accord, thus denying the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It required the CNA, signed by the New Mexico house, to get the ball rolling on a full compact between the State of New Mexico and its Indian tribes. Ten years had been burned for gambling in New Mexico, including American Indian casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo business has grown since 1999. That year, New Mexico charity game providers acquired just $3,048 in revenues. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed one million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have grown steadily since then. Two Thousand and Five saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the operators.
Bingo is categorically beloved in New Mexico. All kinds of owners look for a slice of the pie. Hopefully, the politicians are through batting around gambling as a hot button factor like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s most likely hopeful thinking.
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