Casino Tricks

Read more about the
Las Vegas 2024 Super
Bowl Streaker!

New Mexico has a bitter gaming past. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to cash in on the Native 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 Native bands. When the working group arrived at an agreement with two important local tribes a year later, the Governor refused to sign the bargain. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that Amerindian gaming in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor signed the contract with the Native tribes, anti-wagering forces were able to tie the contract up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had out stepped his bounds in signing a deal, thus denying the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.

It required the CNA, passed by the New Mexico house, to get the process moving on a full accord between the Government of New Mexico and its American Indian bands. Ten years had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, which includes American Indian casino Bingo.

The non-profit Bingo industry has increased since Nineteen Ninety-Nine. In that year, New Mexico not for profit game operators brought in only $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Nonprofit Bingo earnings have increased steadily since then. 2005 witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the operators.

Bingo is apparently favored in New Mexico. All sorts of operators look for a piece of the pie. With hope, the politicos are done batting around gambling as an important issue like they did in the 1990’s. That is most likely hopeful thinking.