About the New Mexico Fiscal Policy
Project
The Fiscal Policy Project, initiated in
2004, provides timely and credible analysis of budget, tax and
related issues in New Mexico.
The Fiscal Policy Project's primary focus is
tax policy analysis and advocacy for progressive tax policy
reform. Two principles of good tax policy guide this work: fairness
and revenue adequacy (i.e., enough tax revenue is generated
to pay for essential services provided by the government).
Tax policy should distribute the responsibility
for taxes in a fair way: higher-income households able to pay
more, should pay more, while lower-income households should
pay a lower percentage of taxes.
Tax policy should also ensure that taxes generate
enough money for the state budget to pay for essential services
and functions such as: quality public education; healthcare;
and public safety.
In 2003 New Mexico's income tax and capital
gains taxes were radically reduced for higher-income families.
As a result, New Mexico's tax policy now fails the two key principles
of good tax policy: fairness and revenue adequacy. It is no
longer fair because higher-income families will now pay the
same percentage of income tax as low-income families, rather
than their fair share. And, New Mexico tax policy now fails
to generate enough money to pay for the essentials. New Mexico's
budget now has a "structural deficit", meaning each
year there is not enough money brought in (through taxes) to
pay for the regular, annual expenses that are expected.
This problem generally leads to cuts in services
and programs relied upon by everyone. To learn more about New
Mexico's tax policy, see the reports listed on the left. You
will also find educational articles in our quarterly newsletter,
Viewpoint, and in our newspaper
columns.
The Fiscal Policy Project is part of a national
initiative called the State Fiscal Analysis Initiative. National
organizations working on progressive tax reform include United
for a Fair Economy,
Fair Taxes for All
, and the Center for Budget and
Policy Priorities.
For more information, contact Gerry
Bradley, Research Director, at 505-244-9505 ext. 23.
