Oklahoma has long been interrelated with Bingo. That’s because the Amerindian tribes of Oklahoma have run Bingo sessions for ages. Clients from many of the surrounding states load up in trucks and travel to Oklahoma to wager on Bingo over the weekends.
The 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) was introduced after a precedent setting decision by The U.S. Supreme Court just the year before. Since that time, 23 of the 39 Indian bands of Oklahoma have opened gambling halls. The Chickasaw were the initial Oklahoma Native tribes to take advantage of the betting rules, and today control 10 gambling halls of their own. Bingo was the game on which these gambling halls were built on. digital games such as slot machines were not authorized, due to the fact that they are believed to contribute to gambling addiction at a higher rate than bingo.
In the past few years, Oklahoma rules have changed to allow for large Native betting gambling halls. You’ll now find Amerindian gambling dens with one armed bandits, video poker and 21 tables. Craps and roulette are not legal in the American Indian gambling dens yet, however this is simply a waiting game. No one can say what having other casino games in the bingo parlours will do for the appeal of bingo.
