[
English ]
New Mexico has a bitter gambling history. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it looked like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Amerindian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a panel in 1990 to create a compact with New Mexico Amerindian bands. When the task force arrived at an agreement with 2 big local tribes a year later, the Governor refused to sign the agreement. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it appeared that American Indian gaming in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the contract with the Native tribes, anti-wagering groups were able to hold the accord up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing the deal, thereby costing the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It required the CNA, signed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the ball rolling on a full contract amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Indian tribes. 10 years had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo industry has grown from 1999. In that year, New Mexico not for profit game owners brought in only $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have grown steadily since then. Two Thousand and Five saw the greatest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the providers.
Bingo is clearly popular in New Mexico. All types of operators look for a bit 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 most likely hopeful thinking.
