Bingo in New Mexico
Friday, 17. April 2026
New Mexico has a bitter gaming past. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in 1989, it looked like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the situation.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King announced a task force in Nineteen Ninety to negotiate a contract with New Mexico Amerindian tribes. When the panel came to an accord with 2 prominent local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until 1994.
When a new governor took over in Nineteen Ninety Five, it appeared that American Indian gambling in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the compact with the American Indian tribes, anti-gambling forces were able to hold the deal up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing the compact, thereby costing the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It required the CNA, passed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the process moving on a full contract amongst the Government of New Mexico and its American Indian tribes. Ten years had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, which includes Indian casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo business has grown since Nineteen Ninety-Nine. In that year, New Mexico not for profit game operators acquired only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed a million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have increased constantly since that time. 2005 saw the largest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the owners.
Bingo is apparently beloved in New Mexico. All sorts of owners look for a bit of the action. Hopefully, the politicos are done batting over gaming as a key issue like they did back in the 1990’s. That’s probably hopeful thinking.
Posted in Casino by Hudson