Casino Tips

Read more about the
Las Vegas 2024 Super
Bowl Streaker!

New Mexico has a stormy gambling history. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it looked like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Indian casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the case.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a task force in Nineteen Ninety to discuss an accord with New Mexico Indian bands. When the working group came to an accord with 2 prominent local bands a year later, the Governor declined to sign the bargain. He would hold up a deal until 1994.

When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that Indian wagering in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the compact with the American Indian bands, anti-gaming groups were able to tie the accord up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing the deal, thereby costing the government of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.

It took the Compact Negotiation Act, signed by the New Mexico government, to get the ball rolling on a full accord amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Indian tribes. Ten years had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.

The not for profit Bingo business has grown since 1999. That year, New Mexico non-profit game providers acquired just $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and passed one million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo earnings have increased steadily since then. 2005 witnessed the largest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the providers.

Bingo is clearly beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of operators look for a bit of the action. Hopefully, the politicos are through batting over gambling as a key factor like they did back in the 1990’s. That is probably wishful thinking.