New Mexico has a stormy gaming background. When the IGRA was passed by the House in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the Amerindian casino craze. Politics assured that wouldn’t be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a working group in 1990 to create a compact with New Mexico Native bands. When the task force arrived at an agreement with two big local bands a year later, the Governor refused to sign the agreement. He would hold up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that American Indian gambling in New Mexico was a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the compact with the Amerindian bands, anti-wagering groups were able to hold the contract up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing a deal, thereby 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, signed by the New Mexico house, to get the ball rolling on a full accord between the Government of New Mexico and its Amerindian bands. 10 years had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.
The nonprofit Bingo industry has increased from Nineteen Ninety-Nine. In that year, New Mexico not for profit game operators brought in only $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo earnings have increased steadily since then. 2005 saw the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the operators.
Bingo is apparently favored in New Mexico. All kinds of operators try for a slice of the action. With hope, the politicians are done batting around gaming as a hot button issue like they did back in the 90’s. That’s without doubt hopeful thinking.