New Mexico has a rocky gambling past. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the American Indian casino craze. Politics assured that would not be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a task force in 1990 to draft a compact with New Mexico Native tribes. When the panel arrived at an agreement with two important local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that Indian betting in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the compact with the Indian bands, anti-wagering forces were able to tie the deal up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing a deal, therefore denying the government of New Mexico many 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 ball rolling on a full contract amongst the Government of New Mexico and its American Indian bands. A decade had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.

The nonprofit Bingo business has grown since 1999. In that year, New Mexico charity game owners brought in just $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed one million dollars in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo revenues have increased constantly since that time. 2005 saw the greatest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the operators.

Bingo is categorically beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of operators look for a slice of the action. With hope, the politicos are through batting over gambling as a hot button factor like they did back in the 90’s. That is probably hopeful thinking.