New Mexico has a rocky gambling background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by the House in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the American Indian casino bandwagon. Politics assured that wouldn’t be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a task force in Nineteen Ninety to discuss a compact with New Mexico American Indian bands. When the working group arrived at an accord with two big local tribes a year later, Governor King declined to sign the bargain. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that Amerindian betting in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the accord with the Native bands, anti-wagering groups were able to tie the accord up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing the accord, thus denying the government of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It required the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico government, to get the process moving on a full compact amongst the State of New Mexico and its Amerindian tribes. Ten years had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, including American Indian casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo business has increased since 1999. That year, New Mexico charity game providers brought in only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Not for profit Bingo revenues have grown constantly since then. 2005 witnessed the largest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the providers.
Bingo is clearly favored in New Mexico. All sorts of owners look for a piece of the pie. With hope, the politicians are through batting over gambling as a hot button matter like they did back in the 90’s. That is without doubt hopeful thinking.