New Mexico Bingo
Posted in Casino on 10/13/2015 03:21 am by Dakota
New Mexico has a rocky gaming background. When the IGRA was passed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the Amerindian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a working group in Nineteen Ninety to negotiate a contract with New Mexico Amerindian tribes. When the panel came to an agreement with 2 important 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 1995, it appeared that American Indian wagering in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the contract with the Indian bands, anti-gambling forces were able to tie the contract up in courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing the compact, therefore costing the state of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It required the CNA, signed by the New Mexico government, to get the process moving on a full accord between the State of New Mexico and its Amerindian bands. A decade had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Native casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo business has grown from Nineteen Ninety-Nine. In that year, New Mexico charity game providers acquired just $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed one million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo earnings have increased constantly since then. 2005 witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the operators.
Bingo is clearly favored in New Mexico. All types of operators look for a slice of the action. With hope, the politicians are through batting over gaming as a key matter like they did back in the 90’s. That’s most likely hopeful thinking.