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New Mexico has a stormy gaming past. When the IGRA was passed by the House in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the American Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a working group in 1990 to negotiate a contract with New Mexico American Indian tribes. When the working group came to an accord with two big local bands a year later, the Governor refused to sign the agreement. He would hold up a deal until 1994.

When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that Indian wagering in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor signed the contract with the Native bands, anti-gambling groups were able to tie the deal up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing the accord, thereby costing 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, signed by the New Mexico house, to get the ball rolling on a full accord amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Indian tribes. Ten years had been burned for gambling in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.

The non-profit Bingo industry has grown since 1999. That year, New Mexico charity game providers brought in just $3,048 in revenues. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo revenues have increased steadily since then. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the largest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the providers.

Bingo is categorically favored in New Mexico. All types of operators look for a piece of the pie. With hope, the politicos are done batting over gaming as an important factor like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s probably wishful thinking.

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