New Mexico Has $14.8 Billion Dollar Reserve, State Still Last Place in Key Quality of Life Categories

New Mexico –

Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s press office sent out an e-mail proclaiming, New Mexico is projected to bring in $14.8 billion in General Fund revenue in Fiscal Year 2028, leaving $924 million in “new money” available for lawmakers in the 2027 legislative session.

The Consensus Revenue Estimating Group presented the forecast to the Legislative Finance Committee in Farmington on Wednesday.

General Fund reserves are expected to end Fiscal Year 2026 at 40.4% of recurring appropriations – or $4.4 billion. This figure reflects a deliberate strategy pursued throughout the Lujan Grisham administration to bank oil and gas windfalls into permanent, interest-generating trust funds rather than treating them as a one-time spending opportunity — a hedge against the volatility that has defined previous boom-and-bust cycles in New Mexico’s budget.

“In New Mexico, government is rich, but the people are poor. The State economy is hampered by high taxes and heavy regulations while average New Mexicans contend with a failing education system and high crime rates. Tax cuts like eliminating the income tax or reform of the GRT won’t solve all our problems, but they’d do a lot more than the massive new government programs Lujan Grisham has introduced over her 8 years in office,” said Paul J. Gessing, President of Rio Grande Foundation, a foundation that  Rio Grande Foundation is to increase liberty and prosperity for all of New Mexico by informing citizens of the importance of individual freedom, limited government, and economic opportunity.

According to Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s press office, the revenue estimate has been revised upward from the previous forecast by $619 million for Fiscal Year 2027 and by $302 million for Fiscal Year 2028. Revenue is expected to grow by 3.8% in Fiscal Year 2027 and 1.5% in Fiscal Year 2028. It goes on to say strength across all of New Mexico’s major revenue sources drove today’s upward revisions. Personal and corporate income tax projections rose by $380 million, while general and selective sales tax projections rose by $166 million for Fiscal year 2027.

The release gave a quote attributed to the Governor touting the reserve.

“New Mexico planned for this by building reserves when times were good and investing in programs that help improve the lives of New Mexicans, including universal child care, expanded health care access and enhanced educational opportunities,” said Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham. “We made sure that the next administration inherits a state that’s financially sound.”