New Mexico has a complex gambling past. When the IGRA was passed by Congress in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Amerindian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a working group in 1990 to draft a compact with New Mexico Indian tribes. When the task force arrived at an accord with 2 important local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the agreement. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took over in 1995, it seemed that Indian gaming in New Mexico was a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the contract with the American Indian bands, anti-wagering groups were able to tie the contract up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing a deal, therefore denying the government of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It required the CNA, signed by the New Mexico house, to get the ball rolling on a full compact between the Government of New Mexico and its American Indian tribes. A decade had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.
The nonprofit Bingo industry has increased since 1999. That year, New Mexico charity game owners brought in only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Non-profit Bingo revenues have grown steadily since then. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the operators.
Bingo is certainly favored in New Mexico. All types of owners look for a slice of the action. Hopefully, the politicians are done batting around gaming as an important factor like they did back in the 1990’s. That is probably hopeful thinking.