The Decline and Unnecessary Fall of New Mexico
There are recent Journal stories about the vibrancy of the economy in Colorado and the obvious contrast to New Mexico. I have spent a fair amount of time in the Denver area in last couple of years and the boom is not limited to Denver but also in suburbs like Lone Tree and Centennial. Yes,…
Read MoreWho Benefits From the Food Tax Exemption
Brian McDonald and Chuck Wellborn A pending bill in the Legislature (HB 412) seeks to bring badly-needed reform to the state’s gross receipts tax (GRT) by removing ill-considered deductions and exemptions, thereby expanding the GRT tax base and enabling the GRT tax rate to be reduced. The latter is a well-recognized principle of state taxation—tax…
Read MoreHands Off My Medicare
We enjoyed that often-quoted Tea Party line from eight years ago: “Keep the government’s hands off my Medicare.” Sorry, dude. Looks like the government is putting its hands on your Medicare after all—at least if Republicans in Congress have their way. They say Medicare costs are going to have to be reduced. And they want…
Read MoreNew Mexico Taxes and Economic Development
Brian McDonald, Lee Reynis, Jim Peach, Chuck Wellborn THE GROSS RECEIPTS TAX The State’s tax system has a major structural problem and it relates to the gross receipts tax. New Mexico enacted an Emergency School Tax in 1935 to fund public schools with a state-level sales tax. In most states, public education is funded with…
Read MoreHow Violent is Albuquerque?
In an opinion piece in the New York Times a few weeks back, the writer said he was glad to be leaving Albuquerque because it was a “land of violence” where the rate of violent crime was twice the national average. While the article provoked lots of discussion locally, the writer’s views of the city…
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