Bingo in New Mexico
New Mexico has a rocky gambling background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was signed by the House in 1989, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Indian casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a panel in 1990 to negotiate an accord with New Mexico American Indian bands. When the task force came to an accord with two important local bands a year later, Governor King declined to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that Amerindian wagering in New Mexico was a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the compact with the Amerindian tribes, anti-gaming groups were able to tie the contract up in courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing a deal, therefore costing the government of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It took the CNA, passed by the New Mexico government, to get the process moving on a full accord between the State of New Mexico and its Amerindian bands. 10 years had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Native casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo industry has increased since Nineteen Ninety-Nine. That year, New Mexico not for profit game operators brought in just $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and passed one million dollars in revenues in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo revenues have grown steadily since then. 2005 saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the owners.
Bingo is apparently beloved in New Mexico. All kinds of operators look for a bit of the action. With hope, the politicos are done batting over gaming as a key matter like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s most likely hopeful thinking.
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