Bingo in New Mexico

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New Mexico has a stormy gambling past. When the IGRA was passed by the House in 1989, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the Native casino bandwagon. Politics assured that wouldn’t be the case.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a working group in Nineteen Ninety to discuss an accord with New Mexico Indian bands. When the working group came to an agreement with two important local bands a year later, the Governor declined to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that Indian wagering in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when the new Governor signed the contract with the Native tribes, anti-gambling groups were able to hold the contract up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing the deal, therefore denying 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 government, to get the ball rolling on a full contract between the Government of New Mexico and its Indian tribes. 10 years had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, which includes American Indian casino Bingo.

The non-profit Bingo industry has gotten bigger since 1999. In that year, New Mexico not for profit game operators brought in just $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed one million dollars in revenues in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo revenues have increased constantly since that time. 2005 saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the operators.

Bingo is apparently popular in New Mexico. All sorts of providers try for a piece of the action. With hope, the politicians are through batting over gaming as a key factor like they did in the 90’s. That is probably wishful thinking.