Bingo in New Mexico

New Mexico has a rocky gaming history. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a panel in 1990 to discuss a compact with New Mexico American Indian tribes. When the task force came to an agreement with 2 prominent local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that Amerindian gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the contract with the American Indian tribes, anti-gaming groups were able to tie the contract up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing a deal, therefore 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, signed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the ball rolling on a full contract amongst the State of New Mexico and its American Indian tribes. A decade had been burned for gambling in New Mexico, which includes American Indian casino Bingo.

The non-profit Bingo industry has gotten bigger since 1999. That year, New Mexico charity game providers acquired only $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have increased steadily since that time. 2005 saw the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the providers.

Bingo is certainly beloved in New Mexico. All types of owners look for a slice of the pie. Hopefully, the politicians are done batting around gaming as a key issue like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s probably hopeful thinking.

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