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New Mexico has a complex gaming history. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Native casino bandwagon. Politics assured that wouldn’t be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a panel in 1990 to draft a contract with New Mexico American Indian tribes. When the working group arrived at an agreement with 2 big local bands a year later, Governor King declined to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took over in 1995, it appeared that American Indian gaming in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed a contract with the Amerindian bands, anti-wagering forces were able to tie the contract up in courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor 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 took the CNA, passed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the ball rolling on a full accord between the State of New Mexico and its Native tribes. A decade had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, including Indian casino Bingo.

The nonprofit Bingo business has grown since 1999. That year, New Mexico not for profit game providers acquired just $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 increased steadily since then. Two Thousand and Five saw the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the providers.

Bingo is clearly favored in New Mexico. All types of operators try for a bit of the pie. Hopefully, the politicos are through batting around gambling as a important matter like they did back in the 1990’s. That is most likely wishful thinking.