New Mexico has a rocky gaming history. When the IGRA was signed by the House in 1989, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the American Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a working group in 1990 to negotiate a contract with New Mexico American Indian tribes. When the task force came to an accord with 2 prominent local bands a year later, Governor King refused to sign the bargain. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that Indian gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the contract with the American Indian tribes, anti-gaming groups were able to tie the accord up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing the deal, thus costing the state of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It took the CNA, passed by the New Mexico government, to get the process moving on a full compact amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Native tribes. A decade had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo business has grown since 1999. That year, New Mexico non-profit game providers acquired only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed a million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo revenues have grown constantly since then. Two Thousand and Five saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the owners.
Bingo is apparently favored in New Mexico. All types of providers look for a slice of the action. With hope, the politicos are done batting around gaming as an important factor like they did in the 90’s. That is without doubt wishful thinking.
April 2nd, 2022
Liam
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