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New Mexico has a rocky gambling past. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the Native casino bandwagon. Politics assured that would not be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in Nineteen Ninety to create an accord with New Mexico American Indian bands. When the task force came to an accord with two big local bands a year later, the Governor declined to sign the bargain. He held up a deal until 1994.

When a new governor took office in Nineteen Ninety Five, it seemed that Indian betting in New Mexico was a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson passed the compact with the Indian tribes, anti-wagering forces were able to hold the accord up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that Governor Johnson had overstepped his bounds in signing the compact, thus costing the state of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.

It required the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico house, to get the process moving on a full contract amongst the State of New Mexico and its American Indian tribes. 10 years had been burned for gaming in New Mexico, which includes American Indian casino Bingo.

The not for profit Bingo business has increased since Nineteen Ninety-Nine. That year, New Mexico not for profit game owners brought in just $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and passed one million dollars in revenues in 2001. Non-profit Bingo revenues have increased steadily since then. 2005 saw the biggest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the operators.

Bingo is categorically popular in New Mexico. All kinds of owners try for a bit of the pie. Hopefully, the politicos are through batting around gambling as a key matter like they did back in the 90's. That's probably hopeful thinking.