Bingo in New Mexico
New Mexico has a rocky gambling history. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by the House in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the American Indian casino bandwagon. Politics assured that wouldn’t be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a working group in Nineteen Ninety to discuss a contract with New Mexico American Indian bands. When the task force came to an agreement with 2 prominent local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that American Indian gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the accord with the Indian 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 deal, thus costing the government of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It required the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the process moving on a full contract amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Indian tribes. Ten years had been burned for gambling in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo business has grown since 1999. In that year, New Mexico not for profit game owners brought in only $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded a million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have increased steadily since then. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the greatest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the operators.
Bingo is certainly favored in New Mexico. All types of owners look for a bit of the pie. Hopefully, the politicos are done batting around gaming as a key factor like they did in the 1990’s. That is probably wishful thinking.