New Mexico has a complex gambling past. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was signed by the House in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the American Indian casino bandwagon. Politics assured that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a panel in Nineteen Ninety to discuss a compact with New Mexico American Indian bands. When the panel arrived at an agreement with 2 important local bands a year later, Governor King declined 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 appeared that American Indian betting in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the contract with the Native bands, anti-wagering groups were able to tie the deal up in courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing a deal, therefore costing the state of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It took the Compact Negotiation Act, signed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the process moving on a full contract amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Native tribes. Ten years had been burned for gambling in New Mexico, including American Indian casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo industry has gotten bigger since 1999. In that year, New Mexico charity game owners acquired just $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed a million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo earnings have increased constantly since that time. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the providers.
Bingo is clearly favored in New Mexico. All kinds of providers look for a piece of the pie. With hope, the politicos are through batting over gambling as a hot button issue like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s without doubt wishful thinking.