New Mexico Bingo
Saturday, 3. December 2016
New Mexico has a rocky gaming background. When the IGRA was signed by the House in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the Native casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that would not be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in Nineteen Ninety to draft a compact with New Mexico Indian tribes. When the task force arrived at an agreement with 2 prominent local bands a year later, the Governor refused to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it appeared that American Indian gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when the new Governor signed the accord with the Native bands, anti-gambling forces were able to hold the accord up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing the accord, therefore denying the government of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It required the CNA, signed by the New Mexico house, to get the ball rolling on a full contract amongst the State of New Mexico and its Native bands. Ten years had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.
The not for profit Bingo industry has grown since Nineteen Ninety-Nine. In that year, New Mexico non-profit game owners brought in just $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Not for profit Bingo revenues have grown steadily since then. 2005 saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the providers.
Bingo is categorically beloved in New Mexico. All types of operators try for a piece of the action. With hope, the politicos are done batting over gaming as a hot button factor like they did back in the 1990’s. That is without doubt wishful thinking.
Posted in Casino by Gwendolyn