State government shouldn’t be sitting on billions of dollars

New Mexico has $54.7 billion in savings and, as was laid out by some Democrat legislative leaders in Sunday’s Albuquerque Journal, they are planning to sock away billions more as long as the oil and gas boom lasts. While they may have strained some ligaments patting themselves on the back, the reality is that all of this money sitting around in government accounts is NOT a good thing. Here are some of the main reasons for that:

1. 1. 1. New Mexico is a state full of problems: crime, dependence on a few industries, poverty, stagnant/aging population, and failing schools. While spending more money has been tried, there are innovative solutions like cutting taxes, recruiting cops and letting them enforce the law, and school choice that COULD make a difference. We have the money. Let’s do something different than we have for 90+ years of New Mexico history.
      2. Government should rely on the people. Having government sitting on massive piles of cash reduces accountability to the people it is supposed to serve (see the “resource curse”). This MAY seem like a good thing to politicians who want to have a plentiful supply of money to spend regardless of economic conditions, but it undermines accountability.
      3. Government is a “going concern.” Unlike people, government doesn’t really need to save for the future at least not on the scale New Mexico does. Governments should enforce the law and institute policies that contribute to human flourishing. New Mexico does a poor job of that. Before piling billions into various “savings” accounts, New Mexico policymakers should figure out a strategy for improving New Mexico’s lagging social indicators.