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New Mexico has a stormy gaming history. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it looked like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Amerindian casino bandwagon. Politics assured that would not be the case.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a working group in 1990 to draft an accord with New Mexico Amerindian tribes. When the task force arrived at an agreement with 2 prominent local bands a year later, the Governor declined to sign the bargain. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that American Indian gaming in New Mexico was a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the accord with the Amerindian bands, anti-gaming forces were able to tie the deal up in courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing the deal, therefore denying 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, passed by the New Mexico government, to get the ball rolling on a full accord amongst the State of New Mexico and its American Indian bands. Ten years had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, which includes American Indian casino Bingo.

The not for profit Bingo industry has grown from Nineteen Ninety-Nine. In that year, New Mexico charity game operators brought in only $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed one million dollars in revenues in 2001. Not for profit Bingo revenues have increased steadily since then. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the providers.

Bingo is certainly beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of owners try for a piece of the action. With hope, the politicos are through batting over gaming as a hot button factor like they did in the 1990’s. That is most likely hopeful thinking.