Measuring
the minimum income families need for living at the bare bones level in New Mexico
Purpose
To offer a more accurate measure of poverty from which policymakers can base criteria for economic development and support services.
Description
Supporting our most vulnerable economically disadvantaged families is a core goal of NM Voices. It has long been agreed by many working in the direct services and advocacy realm that the official federal poverty level (FPL) – the matrix that determines whether families qualify for social services like food stamps – is too low. The formula was created in the 1960s and was based on what was then a family’s largest expense – food. Today, however, many other family expenditures – such as housing, childcare and college tuition – have outpaced the inflation level for consumer good such as groceries. To get a more realistic measure of poverty, many advocates double the FPL. In other words, a family living at 200 percent of the FPL is still considered low income.
To get an even more accurate picture of what it costs to get by in New Mexico, we produced the Bare Bones Budget. Based on actual family costs for four different family configurations living in 52 New Mexico communities, the Bare Bones Budget can highlight community-specific economic factors contributing to the local cost of living and measure policy effectiveness at lifting families out of poverty. More than 1,000 monetary amounts are tabulated covering eight expenditure categories.
History
The Bare Bones Budget was released July 8, 2003, with support from the Daniels Fund, the New Mexico Commission on the Status of Women and the New Mexico Human Needs Coordinating Council. It is still used by researchers, grant writers, and other advocates.
Bare
Bones Budget (Summary) (pdf)
Bare
Bones Budget (Full Report) (pdf)
Bare Bones Budget (PowerPoint Presentation) (pdf)
Appendix
11 of the Full Report is available for each of the 52 surveyed communities below. (Sorry, the Portales appendix is no longer available)
| |
Demographic
Page | Budgetary
Spreadsheet |
| Alamogordo |
| |
| Albuquerque |
|
|
| Anthony |
|
|
| Artesia |
|
|
| Belen |
|
|
| Bloomfield |
|
|
| Carlsbad |
|
|
| Carrizozo |
|
|
| Chama |
|
|
| Clayton |
|
|
| Clovis |
|
|
| Crownpoint |
|
|
| Cuba |
|
|
| Datil |
|
|
| Deming |
|
|
| Des
Moines | |
|
| Espanola |
|
|
| Farmington |
|
|
| Fort
Sumner | |
|
| Gallup |
|
|
| Glenwood |
|
|
| Grants |
|
|
| Hatch |
|
|
| Hobbs |
|
|
| Las
Cruces | |
|
| Las
Vegas | |
|
| Lordsburg |
|
|
| Los
Alamos | |
|
| Los
Lunas | |
|
| Moriarty |
|
|
| Quemado |
|
|
| Questa |
|
|
| Raton |
|
|
| Reserve |
|
|
| Rio
Rancho | |
|
| Roswell |
|
|
| Roy |
|
|
| Ruidoso |
|
|
| Santa
Fe | |
|
| Santa
Rosa | |
|
| Shiprock |
|
|
| Silver
City | |
|
| Socorro |
|
|
| Springer |
|
|
| Taos |
|
|
| To'hajiillee |
|
|
| T
or C | |
|
| Tucumcari |
|
|
| Tularosa |
|
|
| Vaughn |
|
|
| Wagon
Mound | |
|
