New Mexico has a complex gambling past. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Amerindian casino bandwagon. Politics assured that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a panel in Nineteen Ninety to draft a contract with New Mexico Amerindian tribes. When the task force came to an accord with 2 big local tribes a year later, the Governor declined to sign the bargain. He would hold 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 Indian bands, anti-gambling groups were able to tie the accord up in courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing the deal, therefore denying the government of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It required the CNA, passed by the New Mexico house, to get the process moving on a full contract amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Indian tribes. 10 years had been burned for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo business has gotten bigger since Nineteen Ninety-Nine. That year, New Mexico not for profit game providers acquired just $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded one million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo revenues have grown steadily since then. 2005 saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the providers.
Bingo is certainly popular in New Mexico. All sorts of owners look for a slice of the action. Hopefully, the politicians are done batting around gaming as a hot button factor like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s most likely wishful thinking.