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New Mexico has a complex gaming background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by the House in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the Native casino craze. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a task force in Nineteen Ninety to create a contract with New Mexico Native tribes. When the task force came to an accord with two prominent local tribes a year later, Governor King declined to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took over in 1995, it appeared that Amerindian betting in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the compact with the American Indian bands, anti-gambling forces were able to tie the contract up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing a deal, thereby denying the government of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.

It took the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico house, to get the process moving on a full contract between the Government of New Mexico and its American Indian bands. A decade had been burned for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.

The not for profit Bingo business has increased since 1999. In that year, New Mexico non-profit game providers brought in just $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded one million dollars in revenues in 2001. Non-profit Bingo revenues have increased steadily since that time. 2005 witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the owners.

Bingo is certainly beloved in New Mexico. All kinds of providers try for a slice of the action. With hope, the politicians are through batting over gaming as a key factor like they did in the 90’s. That is most likely hopeful thinking.