12
November
Written by Lillie.
Posted in: Casino
New Mexico has a bitter gaming background. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the American Indian casino craze. Politics assured that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in Nineteen Ninety to negotiate a compact with New Mexico Indian bands. When the task force arrived at an agreement with 2 prominent local tribes a year later, the Governor declined to sign the agreement. He would hold up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that Amerindian gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the accord with the Indian bands, anti-wagering forces were able to hold the deal up in courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing the accord, therefore denying the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.
It took the CNA, signed by the New Mexico house, to get the process moving on a full accord amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Native tribes. A decade had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Native casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo industry has grown from 1999. That year, New Mexico charity game owners acquired only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded one million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo revenues have grown constantly since that time. Two Thousand and Five witnessed 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 slice of the pie. With hope, the politicians are through batting around gambling as a key factor like they did in the 1990’s. That is most likely wishful thinking.
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