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New Mexico has a complex gambling past. When the IGRA was passed by the House in 1989, it looked like New Mexico would be one of the states to cash in on the American Indian casino craze. Politics assured that would not be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a task force in 1990 to discuss a contract with New Mexico Indian bands. When the working group arrived at an agreement with two prominent local tribes a year later, the Governor refused to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took over in 1995, it seemed that Native wagering in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the accord with the American Indian tribes, anti-gambling groups were able to hold the accord up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing the deal, therefore denying 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 house, to get the process moving on a full compact amongst the State of New Mexico and its American Indian tribes. A decade had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, which includes American Indian casino Bingo.

The nonprofit Bingo industry has grown from Nineteen Ninety-Nine. That year, New Mexico charity game providers acquired only $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo earnings have grown steadily since then. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the greatest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the owners.

Bingo is certainly favored in New Mexico. All kinds of operators look for a slice of the action. With hope, the politicians are through batting around gambling as a hot button factor like they did in the 1990’s. That is most likely wishful thinking.