New Mexico has a rocky gaming background. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in 1989, it looked like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the American Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a task force in Nineteen Ninety to draft a contract with New Mexico American Indian bands. When the working group arrived at an accord with 2 important local tribes a year later, the Governor refused to sign the agreement. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took over in 1995, it appeared that Indian wagering in New Mexico was a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the contract with the Amerindian bands, anti-gambling forces were able to hold the deal up in courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing a deal, therefore denying the government of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It required the CNA, passed by the New Mexico government, to get the process moving on a full compact between the State of New Mexico and its Amerindian bands. 10 years had been burned for gaming in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.
The nonprofit Bingo business has grown since 1999. In that year, New Mexico charity game providers brought in only $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed one million dollars in revenues in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have grown steadily since that time. 2005 saw the greatest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the operators.
Bingo is clearly favored in New Mexico. All sorts of operators look for a bit of the pie. Hopefully, the politicians are through batting around gaming as a key factor like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s most likely hopeful thinking.
December 10th, 2025
Mohammed
Leave a reply