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New Mexico has a rocky gambling past. When the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed by the House in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the Native casino craze. Politics assured that wouldn't be the case.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in Nineteen Ninety to negotiate an accord with New Mexico American Indian bands. When the panel arrived at an accord with two big local bands a year later, Governor King refused to sign the bargain. He would hold up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took office in 1995, it appeared that Native gaming in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the contract with the Native tribes, anti-gaming forces were able to tie the accord up in courts. A New Mexico court ruled that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing the accord, therefore costing the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees over the next several years.

It required the Compact Negotiation Act, signed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the ball rolling on a full compact amongst the Government of New Mexico and its Amerindian tribes. 10 years had been lost for gaming in New Mexico, which includes Amerindian casino Bingo.

The non-profit Bingo business has increased since 1999. That year, New Mexico not for profit game operators acquired just $3,048 in revenues. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded one million dollars in revenues in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have increased steadily since then. 2005 witnessed the biggest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the operators.

Bingo is certainly favored in New Mexico. All types of providers try for a piece of the pie. Hopefully, the politicians are done batting around gaming as a hot button factor like they did back in the 1990's. That's probably hopeful thinking.