New Mexico has a bitter gambling history. When the IGRA was passed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the Native casino craze. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in Nineteen Ninety to discuss a contract with New Mexico Amerindian bands. When the task force came to an agreement with 2 prominent local bands a year later, Governor King refused to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took over in 1995, it appeared that Native gambling in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the contract with the Native tribes, anti-wagering forces were able to tie the accord up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing the accord, thus costing the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It required the CNA, passed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the ball rolling on a full contract between the State of New Mexico and its Indian bands. A decade had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.
The nonprofit Bingo industry has grown since Nineteen Ninety-Nine. That year, New Mexico not for profit game operators acquired only $3,048 in revenues. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed one million dollars in revenues in 2001. Not for profit Bingo earnings have grown constantly since then. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the largest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the operators.
Bingo is apparently beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of operators look for a slice of the action. Hopefully, the politicos are done batting around gaming as a hot button matter like they did in the 1990’s. That is without doubt hopeful thinking.