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New Mexico has a stormy gambling past. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the case.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a working group in Nineteen Ninety to create a compact with New Mexico Native bands. When the task force arrived at an agreement with two important local bands a year later, Governor King refused to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that American Indian gaming in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the contract with the Indian tribes, anti-gaming groups were able to tie the contract up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing the accord, thereby costing the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.

It took the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico government, to get the process moving on a full accord amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Amerindian tribes. A decade had been squandered for gaming in New Mexico, including Indian casino Bingo.

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

Bingo is certainly beloved in New Mexico. All types of operators try for a bit of the action. With hope, the politicos are through batting over gaming as a key issue like they did in the 90’s. That’s probably hopeful thinking.