Bingo in New Mexico
Friday, 16. October 2026
New Mexico has a rocky gambling background. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was signed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the Amerindian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the case.
The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a task force in Nineteen Ninety to discuss a compact with New Mexico Native bands. When the task force arrived at an accord with two big local tribes a year later, the Governor declined to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.
When a new governor took office in 1995, it seemed that Amerindian wagering in New Mexico was a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the compact with the Amerindian tribes, anti-wagering groups were able to hold the accord up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing the accord, thus costing the government of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.
It took the CNA, passed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the ball rolling on a full contract amongst the State of New Mexico and its Native bands. 10 years had been squandered for gaming in New Mexico, including Native casino Bingo.
The non-profit Bingo business has grown from 1999. That year, New Mexico charity game owners brought in just $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and surpassed one million dollars in 2001. Not for profit Bingo earnings have increased steadily since then. 2005 witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the operators.
Bingo is certainly beloved in New Mexico. All kinds of owners try for a piece of the action. Hopefully, the politicians are done batting over gaming as an important issue like they did in the 90’s. That’s probably wishful thinking.
Posted in Casino by Angel