New Mexico has a complex gambling background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by the House in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a task force in 1990 to create a contract with New Mexico Amerindian tribes. When the panel arrived at an agreement with 2 big local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until 1994.

When a new governor took office in 1995, it appeared that Amerindian wagering in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the contract with the Native bands, anti-wagering groups were able to tie the deal up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing the compact, therefore denying the government of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.

It required the CNA, signed by the New Mexico house, to get the process moving on a full compact amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Native tribes. A decade had been burned for gambling in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.

The nonprofit Bingo business has increased since 1999. In that year, New Mexico non-profit game owners acquired just $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded one million dollars in revenues in 2001. Not for profit Bingo earnings have grown constantly since that time. 2005 saw the greatest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the owners.

Bingo is certainly popular in New Mexico. All types of providers look for a slice of the pie. Hopefully, the politicos are done batting over gaming as a hot button matter like they did in the 90’s. That’s without doubt wishful thinking.