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New Mexico has a complex gambling past. When the IGRA was signed by Congress in 1989, it seemed like New Mexico would be one of the states to get on the American Indian casino craze. Politics guaranteed that would not be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King appointed a panel in Nineteen Ninety to negotiate a contract with New Mexico Indian bands. When the task force arrived at an agreement with two big local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the bargain. He would hold up a deal until 1994.

When a new governor took over in 1995, it appeared that Amerindian gaming in New Mexico was now a certainty. But when Governor Gary Johnson signed the accord with the Indian tribes, anti-gambling forces were able to hold the accord up in the courts. A New Mexico court ruled that Governor Johnson had out stepped his bounds in signing the compact, thus denying the government of New Mexico many hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.

It took the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico legislature, to get the process moving on a full compact between the State of New Mexico and its Amerindian bands. A decade had been squandered for gambling in New Mexico, including Amerindian casino Bingo.

The not for profit Bingo business has gotten bigger from 1999. In that year, New Mexico not for profit game providers acquired only $3,048. This number grew to $725,150 in 2000, and exceeded a million dollars in revenues in 2001. Non-profit Bingo revenues have grown constantly since then. Two Thousand and Five witnessed the largest year, with $1,233,289 earned by the operators.

Bingo is categorically favored in New Mexico. All kinds of operators look for a bit of the action. With hope, the politicos are through batting over gambling as a hot button factor like they did back in the 90's. That is most likely hopeful thinking.