Bingo in New Mexico
New Mexico has a bitter gaming past. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the American Indian casino bandwagon. Politics assured that wouldn’t be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a task force in Nineteen Ninety to discuss an accord with New Mexico Amerindian bands. When the working group arrived at an agreement with 2 important local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that Indian betting in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the contract with the Amerindian bands, anti-wagering forces were able to hold the deal up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing a deal, thereby denying the government 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 government, to get the ball rolling on a full contract between the Government of New Mexico and its American Indian tribes. 10 years had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo business has gotten bigger from 1999. That year, New Mexico charity game operators acquired just $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed a million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo earnings have increased constantly since that time. 2005 witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the operators.
Bingo is clearly beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of operators look for a slice of the action. Hopefully, the politicos are done batting around gambling as a hot button issue like they did back in the 90’s. That’s probably wishful thinking.
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