Bingo in New Mexico
New Mexico has a complex gambling history. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Indian casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in Nineteen Ninety to create a contract with New Mexico Indian tribes. When the task force arrived at an accord 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 appeared that American Indian gambling in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor signed the compact with the Indian tribes, anti-wagering groups were able to hold the accord up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing the accord, therefore denying the government of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues 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 compact between the Government of New Mexico and its Amerindian bands. Ten years had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Amerindian casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo industry has grown since 1999. In that year, New Mexico charity game operators brought in only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed one million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have grown constantly since that time. 2005 witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the owners.
Bingo is apparently beloved in New Mexico. All kinds of providers try for a piece of the action. Hopefully, the politicians are done batting over gaming as an important matter like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s without doubt hopeful thinking.