New Mexico Bingo

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New Mexico has a complex gaming history. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in 1989, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Indian casino bandwagon. Politics assured that would not be the case.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a working group in 1990 to create a contract with New Mexico Indian bands. When the task force arrived at an accord with two important local tribes a year later, Governor King declined to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.

When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that American Indian gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the compact with the American Indian tribes, anti-wagering groups were able to tie the accord up in courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing the deal, thus 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 process moving on a full contract between the State of New Mexico and its Native tribes. Ten years had been burned for gambling in New Mexico, including Indian casino Bingo.

The non-profit Bingo industry has grown since 1999. That year, New Mexico non-profit game operators acquired only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed one million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have increased steadily since that time. 2005 witnessed the greatest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the operators.

Bingo is clearly favored in New Mexico. All sorts of operators try for a slice of the pie. With hope, the politicians are done batting over gaming as a key issue like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s probably wishful thinking.