New Mexico has a stormy gaming past. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the American Indian casino craze. Politics assured that would not be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a panel in 1990 to draft a contract with New Mexico American Indian bands. When the working group arrived at an agreement with 2 big local bands a year later, the Governor refused to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that Native wagering in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the compact with the Indian tribes, anti-wagering forces were able to tie the accord up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing a deal, therefore costing the state of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It took the CNA, signed by the New Mexico house, to get the process moving on a full compact between the State of New Mexico and its Native bands. A decade had been squandered for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Native casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo industry has grown from 1999. That year, New Mexico non-profit game operators acquired only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo earnings have grown steadily since then. Two Thousand and Five saw the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the owners.
Bingo is clearly favored in New Mexico. All types of operators look for a slice of the action. With hope, the politicians are done batting around gambling as a key matter like they did in the 90’s. That’s without doubt wishful thinking.