New Mexico has a rocky gambling past. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the Native casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a working group in Nineteen Ninety to discuss an accord with New Mexico Indian tribes. When the working group came to an accord with 2 prominent local tribes a year later, the Governor declined to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it appeared that Native wagering in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the contract with the American Indian bands, anti-gambling groups were able to tie the deal up in courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing a deal, thus costing the government of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It required the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico house, to get the ball rolling on a full compact amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Amerindian tribes. A decade had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo industry has gotten bigger from 1999. In that year, New Mexico non-profit game operators brought in only $3,048 in revenues. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo earnings have grown steadily since that time. 2005 witnessed the largest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the providers.
Bingo is apparently favored in New Mexico. All sorts of operators look for a piece of the action. With hope, the politicians are through batting over gambling as a hot button factor like they did in the 90’s. That is most likely hopeful thinking.