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Bingo in New Mexico

New Mexico has a complex gambling background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was signed by the House in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it looked like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Amerindian casino bandwagon. Politics guaranteed that wouldn’t be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a panel in Nineteen Ninety to discuss a compact with New Mexico Native tribes. When the panel came to an agreement with 2 prominent local bands a year later, the Governor declined to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took over in 1995, it seemed that American Indian betting in New Mexico was a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the accord with the Indian bands, anti-wagering groups were able to tie the contract up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing a deal, therefore costing the government of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.

It required the CNA, signed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the process moving on a full accord amongst the State of New Mexico and its Indian tribes. 10 years had been squandered for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Native casino Bingo.

The non-profit Bingo business has gotten bigger from Nineteen Ninety-Nine. That year, New Mexico not for profit game owners brought in only $3,048 in revenues. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have increased steadily since that time. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the providers.

Bingo is clearly beloved in New Mexico. All kinds of owners look for a bit of the action. With hope, the politicians are through batting around gambling as an important issue like they did in the 90’s. That is most likely hopeful thinking.

 

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