New Mexico Bingo
by Kenny on Thursday, August 26th, 2021
New Mexico has a stormy gambling past. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was signed by Congress in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the American Indian casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that would not be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a task force in 1990 to create a contract with New Mexico Amerindian tribes. When the working group came to an agreement with two prominent local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it seemed that Indian gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the compact with the American Indian tribes, anti-gaming groups were able to tie the deal up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing the deal, thereby denying the government of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It took the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico house, to get the ball rolling on a full contract between the Government of New Mexico and its American Indian bands. A decade had been squandered for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Native casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo industry has gotten bigger since 1999. That year, New Mexico not for profit game operators acquired just $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded one million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have grown steadily since that time. Two Thousand and Five saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the providers.
Bingo is categorically beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of owners look for a slice of the action. Hopefully, the politicos are done batting over gambling as a hot button issue like they did back in the 90’s. That’s without doubt wishful thinking.
Posted in Casino | No Comments »