Bingo in New Mexico
New Mexico has a bitter gaming background. When the IGRA was signed by the House in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Indian casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in 1990 to discuss an accord with New Mexico American Indian bands. When the panel came to an accord with two big local bands a year later, the Governor declined to sign the bargain. He would hold up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it seemed that American Indian wagering in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor signed the accord with the American Indian bands, anti-gambling forces were able to tie the deal up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing the deal, therefore costing the government of New Mexico 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 ball rolling on a full contract between the Government of New Mexico and its Amerindian tribes. A decade had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, including Amerindian casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo industry has increased from 1999. That year, New Mexico charity game owners acquired only $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have increased constantly since that time. 2005 saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the operators.
Bingo is certainly beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of operators look for a bit of the action. With hope, the politicos are done batting over gaming as an important matter like they did in the 1990’s. That’s probably hopeful thinking.
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