New Mexico Bingo
New Mexico has a bitter gaming background. When the IGRA was signed by the House in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a panel in Nineteen Ninety to create a compact with New Mexico American Indian bands. When the working group came to an agreement with two important local tribes a year later, Governor King declined to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it appeared that Amerindian wagering in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor signed the contract with the Indian tribes, anti-gambling forces were able to hold the contract up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing the accord, therefore costing the state 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 house, to get the process moving on a full contract between the State of New Mexico and its Native tribes. A decade had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo business has grown since 1999. That year, New Mexico non-profit game owners brought in only $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed a million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo revenues have grown steadily since then. 2005 witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the providers.
Bingo is certainly favored in New Mexico. All types of providers look for a slice of the action. With hope, the politicos are done batting over gambling as a hot button matter like they did back in the 90’s. That’s probably hopeful thinking.
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