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New Mexico has a stormy gambling background. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the Indian casino bandwagon. Politics assured that would not be the case.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a task force in Nineteen Ninety to create a compact with New Mexico Amerindian bands. When the task force came to an accord with two big local tribes a year later, Governor King declined to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until 1994.

When a new governor took over in 1995, it appeared that Amerindian wagering in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the compact with the American Indian bands, anti-wagering groups were able to tie the deal up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing a deal, therefore costing the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.

It took the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the process moving on a full contract amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Native bands. Ten years had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.

The nonprofit Bingo business has grown from 1999. In that year, New Mexico charity game providers brought in only $3,048 in revenues. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo earnings have increased constantly since that time. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the greatest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the providers.

Bingo is categorically beloved in New Mexico. All kinds of owners try for a bit of the action. Hopefully, the politicos are through batting around gaming as an important matter like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s probably wishful thinking.