New Mexico has a complex gambling background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was signed by Congress in 1989, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Native casino bandwagon. Politics assured that wouldn’t be the case.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in Nineteen Ninety to create a contract with New Mexico Indian tribes. When the working group came to an accord with two prominent local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the agreement. He would hold up a deal until 1994.

When a new governor took office in 1995, it seemed that Indian betting in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the accord with the Native tribes, anti-wagering forces were able to hold the accord up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing a deal, therefore costing the state of New Mexico many 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 process moving on a full accord amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Amerindian tribes. A decade had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, including Indian casino Bingo.

The not for profit Bingo business has grown from 1999. That year, New Mexico non-profit game owners acquired only $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed one million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have grown constantly since that time. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the owners.

Bingo is categorically popular in New Mexico. All types of owners look for a slice of the action. With hope, the politicos are through batting around gambling as a key issue like they did in the 90’s. That’s most likely hopeful thinking.