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New Mexico has a stormy gambling background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Amerindian casino craze. Politics assured that wouldn’t be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a working group in 1990 to negotiate a contract with New Mexico Indian tribes. When the task force came to an accord with 2 prominent local bands a year later, the Governor declined to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.

When a new governor took over in 1995, it appeared that American Indian gaming in New Mexico was a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the compact with the Indian bands, anti-wagering groups 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, therefore costing the government of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.

It required the Compact Negotiation Act, signed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the process moving on a full accord between the State of New Mexico and its Amerindian bands. 10 years had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.

The non-profit Bingo business has increased since Nineteen Ninety-Nine. In that year, New Mexico non-profit game operators brought in just $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed one million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo revenues have increased constantly since then. 2005 witnessed the greatest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the owners.

Bingo is categorically favored in New Mexico. All types of owners look for a bit of the action. Hopefully, the politicos are done batting over gaming as a hot button factor like they did in the 90’s. That is without doubt hopeful thinking.