New Mexico has a complex gaming background. When the IGRA was passed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Amerindian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a panel in 1990 to create a contract with New Mexico Indian tribes. When the task force came to an accord with 2 big local bands a year later, the Governor refused to sign the agreement. He would hold up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that American Indian betting in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the contract with the Native bands, anti-gambling forces were able to tie the accord up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing the accord, thereby denying the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees 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 between the State of New Mexico and its Amerindian tribes. 10 years had been squandered for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Native casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo business has grown from Nineteen Ninety-Nine. That year, New Mexico non-profit game operators brought in just $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed one million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo revenues have increased constantly since that time. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the greatest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the owners.
Bingo is apparently favored in New Mexico. All sorts of providers look for a slice of the pie. Hopefully, the politicos are through batting around gambling as a hot button issue like they did back in the 1990’s. That is without doubt wishful thinking.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
