New Mexico has a bitter gambling history. When the IGRA was signed by the House in 1989, it looked like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Amerindian casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a task force in Nineteen Ninety to discuss an accord with New Mexico Indian tribes. When the task force came to an agreement with 2 important local bands a year later, Governor King declined to sign the agreement. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it seemed that Amerindian gambling in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the compact with the Indian tribes, anti-wagering forces were able to tie the deal up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing the deal, thereby denying the government of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It required the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the process moving on a full accord amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Indian bands. A decade had been squandered for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Native casino Bingo.
The nonprofit Bingo industry has increased from 1999. That year, New Mexico non-profit game owners brought in only $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed one million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo earnings have increased constantly since that time. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the owners.
Bingo is certainly beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of providers try for a piece of the action. With hope, the politicos are through batting over gaming as a hot button matter like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s without doubt hopeful thinking.
