A Little Bit of the Northeast in the Southwest

The news is bad, and it just keeps getting worse.

According to the University of Virginia’s Demographics Research Group, New Mexico is slated to lose 6.3 percent of its working-age population between 2010 and 2040.

That’s pretty awful, but the picture looks horrific when one examines our neighbors. In Texas, the working-age population is predicted to grow by 50.7 percent. Colorado (47.0 percent), Utah (41.6 percent), Arizona (33.0 percent), and Oklahoma (16.3 percent) are estimated to grow, too. Pew Center has an article on the issue here.

Fabulous weather, friendly people, low costs, and rich history/culture/cuisine. Yet our present is shaky, and our future is downright terrifying. Something is very, very wrong with the Land of Enchantment. Unless policy changes are made, rapidly, its fate will mirror the deeply distressed states of the Northeast — not our dynamic, vibrant, and pro-growth neighbors.