New Mexico has a bitter gaming history. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by the House in 1989, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the Amerindian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a task force in 1990 to draft a contract with New Mexico Amerindian bands. When the working group came to an accord with 2 important local bands a year later, Governor King refused to sign the agreement. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that Indian gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the contract with the Indian tribes, anti-gambling forces were able to hold the contract up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing the deal, thus costing the government of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It took the CNA, signed by the New Mexico government, to get the process moving on a full compact amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Native bands. Ten years had been burned for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Native casino Bingo.
The nonprofit Bingo business has grown from Nineteen Ninety-Nine. That year, New Mexico non-profit game providers brought in just $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed a million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo revenues have grown steadily since that time. 2005 witnessed the largest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the providers.
Bingo is clearly beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of operators look for a piece of the action. Hopefully, the politicians are done batting around gaming as a hot button factor like they did in the 90’s. That is probably hopeful thinking.
August 31st, 2018
Marques
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