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

The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a panel in 1990 to draft a contract with New Mexico Indian tribes. When the panel came to an agreement with two prominent local bands a year later, the Governor refused to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.

When a new governor took office in 1995, it appeared that Indian gaming in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the contract with the Indian tribes, anti-gambling forces were able to tie the accord up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing the accord, thus denying the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.

It took the CNA, passed by the New Mexico government, to get the process moving on a full compact between the Government of New Mexico and its Native bands. Ten years had been squandered for gaming in New Mexico, including American Indian casino Bingo.

The non-profit Bingo business has gotten bigger from 1999. In that year, New Mexico non-profit game owners brought in just $3,048 in revenues. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded a million dollars in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo revenues have increased constantly since that time. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the largest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the operators.

Bingo is apparently beloved in New Mexico. All kinds of operators look for a bit of the action. With hope, the politicians are through batting over gaming as a key factor like they did in the 90’s. That is most likely wishful thinking.