[ English ]

New Mexico has a stormy gaming background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was signed by the House in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Amerindian casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that would not be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in Nineteen Ninety to discuss a compact with New Mexico Amerindian bands. When the task force arrived at an accord with two 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 Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that Native gaming in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the accord with the Native tribes, anti-wagering forces were able to hold the accord up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing the accord, therefore costing the state of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.

It required the CNA, passed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the ball rolling on a full accord amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Native tribes. 10 years had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.

The non-profit Bingo business has increased since Nineteen Ninety-Nine. That year, New Mexico non-profit game owners brought in only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo earnings have grown constantly since then. 2005 saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the owners.

Bingo is certainly favored in New Mexico. All kinds of owners try for a bit of the action. With hope, the politicos are done batting around gambling as a hot button factor like they did back in the 90’s. That’s most likely hopeful thinking.