10.08
Bingo in New Mexico
New Mexico has a stormy gaming past. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the Amerindian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a working group in Nineteen Ninety to negotiate an accord with New Mexico Native tribes. When the panel came to an accord with two important local tribes a year later, the Governor declined to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it seemed that Indian wagering in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the contract with the Amerindian bands, anti-gambling forces were able to hold the contract up in courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing a deal, thus costing the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It took the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico government, to get the process moving on a full contract amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Amerindian tribes. 10 years had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.
The nonprofit Bingo business has grown since 1999. That year, New Mexico non-profit game providers brought in only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed a million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have grown steadily since that time. 2005 saw the greatest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the owners.
Bingo is apparently beloved in New Mexico. All kinds of operators look for a slice of the action. With hope, the politicians are done batting around gaming as a key issue like they did back in the 1990’s. That is most likely wishful thinking.