According to Wallethub’s latest report (addressed in the chart below) New Mexico’s total tax burden is 9.37 percent, 12th-HIGHEST in the nation. Not surprisingly, that is higher than ANY of the states below. Interestingly, New Mexico ranks 48th on “Best Places to Live” which is worse than any of the states lacking personal income taxes.
Since November of 2021 when Gov. Lujan Grisham went over to Scotland for the big COP 26 conference on climate change, we’ve been wondering who specifically paid for her trip and how the Gov. and her staff got there.
While the best we could get on who paid for the trip is something called “Climate Registry,” a non-profit that grew out of the California Climate Action Registry, which is discussed (along with the Gov.’s entourage) in this article, we FINALLY have the details on the Gov.’s travel.
In summary, MLG flew coach from Albuquerque to Dallas, “premium economy” to London, and the equivalent of business class (known as Club Europe) from London to Gatwick in Scotland. The total cost of her flights was $1,808.97.
You can find details on the Gov.’s plane ticket here.
The graphic below IS NOT the Gov.’s itinerary, rather it was pulled off the British Airways site today to give an understanding of the differences between the various flight classes.
We don’t begrudge the Gov. for not flying coach or for even flying in the first place and her hypocrisy is not as bad as those who flew their private jets over to Europe for the conference. We just wish the Gov. would acknowledge the tremendous benefits offered by oil and gas as she flew off to work against them and the industry that does so much for the State she governs.
On this week’s conversation Paul and Wally discuss the upcoming special session of the Legislature. Both agree that the proposed rebates are nice (really), but it is time for New Mexico to really address its poorly-designed tax code. Paul believes that GRT reform is the “low-hanging-fruit” and that it must happen first, but he has the personal income tax in his sights as well.
Data highlights the tragedy of MLG’s school shutdowns.
The problem with Ketanji Brown Jackson’s answer on “women.”
The US and EU have reached a deal on LNG exports, but will it actually do anything if production isn’t ramped up and new facilities aren’t green-lighted?
Hot on the heels of the new “Opportunity Scholarship” program (free college) becoming law, UNM and NMSU increase tuition. To be totally fair, the rate of increase is below the current, out-of-control inflation rate;
The City of Albuquerque under the Keller Administration has paid out more than $337K regarding open records requests/IPRA violations including $15,000 to the Rio Grande Foundation.
Mayor Keller has vetoed repeal of the City’s plastic bag ban. What’s next?
ABQ City Council is still discussing reducing GRT. Paul discusses the status of that issue.
The following opinion piece recently appeared in several New Mexico media outlets including the Eastern New Mexico News.
There are many things that make New Mexico unique, but one of the most noteworthy political nuances is the State’s deep and unusual relationship with energy. New Mexico’s Democratic politicians love the money and jobs generated by the traditional energy industry, but also wish to be seen as pushing back against it to placate their environmentalist base.
Nonetheless, New Mexico, a state blessed with all sorts of energy resources (both traditional as well as wind and solar) has continued to embrace Democrat politicians despite the Party’s leftward shift on energy in recent years. With oil prices skyrocketing and electricity reliability in question, it is time for voters to demand sensible energy policies from politicians.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine caused gasoline prices to jump dramatically after having risen throughout Joe Biden’s time in the White House (due in part to his anti-energy policies and rhetoric). And, while there are limited things to be done in the short term, in the intermediate and longer term, former New Mexican and Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland should be a pivotal figure in addressing America’s energy issues. Instead, she is nowhere to be found.
Haaland manages the sprawling federal estate including the Bureau of Land Management. Immediately upon taking office the Biden Administration instituted a permitting moratorium on federal lands. Rather than changing directions and opening the leasing process as prices rose, under Haaland’s direction, new oil and gas lease auctions have remained on hold.
Expediting new drilling on federal lands is just one of many ways Haaland could get serious about reducing gas prices (and at least partially defanging Russia which relies heavily on oil and gas exports to Europe) but remains silent on the issue, even on her official Twitter account.
Speaking of natural gas which often takes a back seat to oil in New Mexicans’ minds, New Mexico leaders could and should be advocating for natural gas as a cleaner energy solution relative to coal and others. New Mexico is one of the leading natural gas producing states in the nation.
Thanks to a fracking-driven production boom, natural gas has been used to replace coal in electricity generation. This has been one of the primary tools in reducing US CO2 emissions in recent years, a fact recognized by former President Barack Obama. Furthermore, exports of US-produced liquefied natural gas (LNG) have created home-grown American jobs, narrowed the trade deficit, and helped foreign countries like China reduce their CO2 emissions.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine provides the United States (and by extension New Mexico) an ideal opportunity to expand production of natural gas. Unfortunately, our State’s senior Senator Martin Heinrich remains obsessed with eliminating natural gas in favor of “electrification.”
Rather than focusing on alleviating the pain of high energy costs (driven both by the Russian invasion and Biden Administration policies) Heinrich is pushing to replace natural gas in home heating and cooking. He remains uninterested in transitioning Western Europe away from Russian energy to New Mexico-produced natural gas.
Electrification is a fool’s errand. According to new Department of Energy data, electricity costs $41.79 per million BTU’s. Natural gas costs $12.09 per million BTU’s. And that’s in today’s numbers. Electrification would increase US electricity consumption by 40 percent. Public Service Company of New Mexico was concerned about blackouts and brownouts this summer due to the shuttering of one coal fired power plant. A 40% increase in electricity consumption over current levels will increase prices well above today’s levels.
A greener and more affordable future can be had, and New Mexico can lead the way. With abundant nuclear resources, natural gas, and renewable power, New Mexico has a lot to offer the nation and the world. But first, our leaders including, but by no means limited to Secretary Haaland and Heinrich need to get serious about balancing economic and technological reality with their “green” aspirations.
Paul Gessing is president of New Mexico’s Rio Grande Foundation. The Rio Grande Foundation is an independent, nonpartisan, tax-exempt research and educational organization dedicated to promoting prosperity for New Mexico based on principles of limited government, economic freedom and individual responsibility
With inflation continuing to hit record highs The New Mexico Legislature will soon head into a special session that COULD result in refunds of between $250 and $400 for all taxpayers OR some other approach to assisting New Mexicans hard-pressed by rising prices.
We applaud such efforts and encourage the Legislature to provide refunds/relief to ALL taxpayers rather than focusing those rebates based on income. The problem with rebates is that families and businesses can’t really plan on them and they are explicitly a “one-time” policy. None of this is to say that rebates shouldn’t happen, but with New Mexico oil production growing rapidly and prices at sustained, high levels (and New Mexico’s bloated budget), policymakers SHOULD be considering more profound tax policy changes.
For reasons previously stated, the most obvious thing to do is to reform the State’s gross receipts tax. But, it is ALSO time to consider long-term, gradually-implemented reductions to New Mexico’s personal income tax.
The personal income tax is expected to generate just over $2 billion in FY 2023. You can see how that stacks up relative to other General Fund revenue sources below. 
$2 billion is a lot of money even within the context of a nearly $9 billion general fund budget. But, New Mexico government is bloated by almost any standard as seen below (you can find the raw data here). A combination of high ongoing oil and gas prices, prospective gross receipts tax reform (which would further boost economic growth), and a need to diversify New Mexico’s economy should lead to careful consideration of income tax cuts.
Broader spending restraint and reduction in spending on programs like film subsidies could further free up revenues.
A recent report has devastating news for already struggling students in New Mexico schools. Most especially, the new report highlights how badly Gov. Lujan Grisham’s decision to shut down the schools to in-person learning for a year impacted learning.
The writeup comes from The UK Daily Mail and uses data from standardized test provider Renaissance Learning Inc. As seen below, New Mexico students (already behind their peers in other states) saw reading scores decline by 7%, the most among US states.
Sadly, reading is not the only area in which New Mexico students lost ground. According to the report New Mexico students saw declines exceeding those of any other state beside Virginia.
Paul visits with Robert McEntyre of the New Mexico Oil & Gas Association (NMOGA) about the state of the industry. They discuss domestic oil and gas production issues against the backdrop of international energy price volatility. They address the impact gasoline prices are having in the United States and New Mexico and policy decisions that have hindered domestic oil and gas production.
Joe Biden’s nominee for the US Supreme Court raised eyebrows and generated thousands of internet memes when she claimed in her testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee that she “couldn’t provide a definition for the word ‘woman.’”
Clearly, she knows what a woman is. She is clearly intelligent. She clearly wishes NOT to define the term publicly for political reasons. And that’s the real problem. If she can’t or won’t define something very simple for clearly political reasons how will she interpret complicated laws that she may disagree with?
We recently saw liberal justices on SCOTUS who were simply unwilling to draw ANY line regarding executive power relating to vaccine mandates regardless of whether Congress had granted the Biden Administration such sweeping powers. If she can’t/won’t draw a firm line over the definition of male and female, will she really make tough/unpopular decisions restricting the power of government officials including (but by no means limited to) the one nominating her to the Nation’s highest Court?
Where’s Interior Secretary Deb Haaland been hiding?
New Mexico Legislature to convene for special session on April 5. Some kind of “relief” for taxpayers and reconsideration of the vetoed “junior” bill will be on the agenda for the session beginning April 5. Looks like the controversial election bill will not be on the agenda (thankfully).
If the Legislature were to suspend New Mexico’s 17 cent gas tax, it would save motorists $240 million annually.
The ABQ Journal has a three part series on the oil and gas industry and the current energy crunch. They (and the media in general) miss some important points.
The “Affordable” Housing fund passed in the Legislature won’t make housing in New Mexico more affordable.
Albuquerque City Council passed a vaccine mandate ban and will soon discuss a GRT cut.
Paul and Wally discuss the passing of attorney Pat Rogers.
Oil and gas drilling is a crucial financial driver for the state of New Mexico. In 2021, the industry contributed over one-third, or $2.9 billion, to the state budget. This money goes towards funding hospitals, schools, roads, bridges and other essential services in our local communities and tribes.
These days, the geopolitical and economic realities have been as harsh as in recent memory. Across the country everyday Americans are feeling the pressure, and nowhere more noticeably so than at the gas pump. Here in New Mexico, the statewide average price per gallon sits at $4.14 – a far cry from the $2.87 a gallon just one year ago.
The Biden Administration has pointed the finger at the oil and gas industry, claiming that despite a drop in oil prices in recent days, gas prices continue to stay high due to “price gouging” by the industry.
The reality is that the federal government has in recent months taken actions to weaken our mighty domestic oil and gas industries in a time when we need them most. Placing a moratorium on new oil and gas leases is proving to be a costly decision. In a time when our country and the rest of the world are seeking to lessen our dependence on foreign energy, we need policies that favor more domestic production—not less.
The Administration continues to tout the statistic of 9,000 unused federal leases across the country that oil and gas companies are sitting on. The reality is the process of going from lease approval to drilling is bureaucratic and slow. Many previously issued leases are tied up in litigation or regulatory disputes. And the reality is that some of the leased lands do not have the resources to make drilling financially viable.
The leasing situation is particularly relevant to New Mexico which, despite record oil production, remains disproportionately impacted relative to other states.
The Rio Grande Foundation is New Mexico’s pro-freedom, free market think tank. We believe in limited government and the rule of law. As such, we have had serious concerns about legislation and the use of said laws which have empowered our Governor to declare an emergency during the recent pandemic and act unilaterally in ways that have had significant, negative impacts on ALL New Mexicans, especially small businesses and school children.
Bipartisan legislation has been introduced in recent legislative sessions that would at least partially address the issue. Unfortunately those bills have received scant consideration in the Legislature. The Rio Grande Foundation holds the rule of law and separation of powers in high regard and believes that such concepts MUST be restored in New Mexico. Thus, we are asking candidates for the Legislature AND Governor to sign the following pledge that they will address the issue in substantive ways if they are elected.
The following is being circulated to candidates for the Legislature AND Governor:
“I commit to balancing power in future emergency declarations. This includes: restricting “emergencies” to a fixed period of time, clearly defining “emergency” in statute, and requiring majorities in both houses of the state legislature to approve extensions of any “emergency” declaration.”
Candidates can add their names here: http://rgfnm.com/pledge
We will be releasing the list of supporters well in advance of the June primary and then again before the November election.
The media just can’t bring themselves to say “thank you” to the oil and gas industry in New Mexico. The latest is the Albuquerque Journal’s thee part series on the Industry which states it is “in the crosshairs” and includes several inane statements including one from NMSU economist Jim Peach. Peach essentially advocated for “modern monetary theory” on the RGF podcast.
For starters, European countries which always pay somewhat more for gasoline due to heavy tax burdens are currently paying MUCH more due to the situation in Ukraine. England, for example, is paying $8.30/gallon. Natural gas prices which Europe is more directly reliant on and is not quite the global market that oil is have risen even more dramatically, hitting record highs.
Rather than the “in the crosshairs” rhetoric, Americans should be saying hearty “thank you’s” to the frackers and other innovators who have brought Americans inexpensive, reliable energy.
Environmentalists ALWAYS have energy in their crosshairs, but the truth is they have nothing to replace traditional energy with. We saw this when PNM started talking about a “blackout” debacle coming this summer. Environmentalists opposed to coal didn’t try to oppose keeping the plant open.
Finally, the article completely accepts the claims by so-called “experts” that “Laying the blame on Biden is almost as stupid as blaming Jimmy Carter for oil shortages in the 1970s.”
Peach doesn’t even get is basic history right. The Jimmy Carter administration began a phased deregulation of oil prices on April 5, 1979 (that’s more than halfway through his term). Price controls on gasoline (and to be clear Nixon is to blame for imposing them) WERE a big part of the problem with shortages.
Similarly Biden has slowed permitting, eliminated pipelines, and imposed numerous regulations on the Industry, all while bringing increased uncertainty to it. Biden is definitely to blame for a significant part of the recent price runup. Media/Administration claims to the contrary are bogus.
A slightly shortened version of this opinion piece was published in the Albuquerque Journal on March 20, 2022. A chart illustrating Albuquerque’s spending is found below the text.
Elections have consequences. After four years of “progressive” leadership by Mayor Keller and a left leaning city council, the election of November 2020 saw a more center-right Council. While much attention was given to the fact that Tim Keller was reelected by a wide margin despite the City’s spiraling crime problem, Albuquerque voters didn’t actually vote for the status quo.
Now, we are starting to see a shift toward a more moderate approach to the issues from City Council. Better legislative proposals are in the pipeline, but with a 5-4 majority and a hostile mayor, getting these ideas past the finish line will be a challenge requiring grassroots support.
A starting point is reducing gross receipts taxes. Back in 2018, shortly after taking office, Mayor Keller and the new “progressive” council majority raised the (regressive) GRT by 3/8th of a cent. This was a major tax increase considering that the City’s overall GRT “take” before the tax hike was 2.375%. That made Keller’s tax hike a nearly 9% increase in Albuquerque’s rate.
And, not surprisingly, that tax increased led to rapid spending growth in the City’s budget. Even when the annual budget freeze in the 2021 budget due to COVID 19 is included, the City’s budget is up 27 percent under Mayor Keller.
Unfortunately, when the City Council met recently to discuss Councilor Lewis’ plan to cut just 1/8th of a cent off the GRT (not the full amount added in 2018), Keller’s Chief Financial Officer Sanjay Bhakta claimed “this is the worst time possible” to cut taxes.
Considering that, among numerous other wasteful spending programs, the City has just undertaken a $3 million plan to make City buses “free” to riders (that’s on top of millions in annual transit subsidies), it would seem the City could do something to help residents who continue to be pummeled by rising inflation. Unfortunately, it seems that Mayor Keller and his Administration remain opposed to this reasonable tax reduction.
There are other exciting efforts underway to move Albuquerque in a more pro-freedom direction. The big question is whether Keller will stand in the way of everything or if he’ll choose his battles. For example, Councilor Bassan has proposed ending the City’s plastic bag ban which recently passed City Council.
The unnecessary and environmentally irrelevant ban on plastic bags makes daily life more difficult for thousands of Albuquerque residents. Those bags are often reused and can be recycled. They are hardly the environmental problem their opponents claim. According to Our World in Data, the entire continent of North America generates less than 1 percent of the “mismanaged plastic” on the planet.
If Keller and City Council really want to address the City’s serious litter problem, the legions of transients begging on street corners, camping throughout town, and leaving trash behind wherever they go would be a better place to start.
While a number of other important issues are being discussed at City Council that, if adopted, will move our City in a positive direction, no effort highlights the ideological shift better than the effort to restore market forces in public construction projects. Immediately after the 2020 election, a bill was rammed through Council by liberals and the trade unions to mandate that public construction projects use union labor.
Estimates are that such unfair laws called “Project Labor Agreements” boost taxpayer costs by 14 percent. A bill is now working its way through the current Council to repeal that law and instead allow all workers and contractors regardless of union membership to bid for city construction projects.
Albuquerque is a great and beautiful city, but its management has left a lot to be desired in recent years. The current City Council is standing up to big government and special interests. They deserve your support.
Paul Gessing is president of New Mexico’s Rio Grande Foundation. The Rio Grande Foundation is an independent, nonpartisan, tax-exempt research and educational organization dedicated to promoting prosperity for New Mexico based on principles of limited government, economic freedom and individual responsibility
While the 2022 legislative session was noteworthy for the lack of BIG, BAD left-wing agenda items falling by the wayside and for actual tax cuts being enacted.
However, a relatively successful session still had its share of warts. One of those warts came in the form of SB 134, the so-called “affordable housing trust fund.” Senate Bill 134 dedicates 2.5% of the annual severance tax bond capacity for the New Mexico Housing Trust Fund.
Affordable housing is a serious issue in New Mexico. In the past year, rent has increased 13.7 percent nationwide and 18.5 percent in Albuquerque. But, as I note in this article from The Center Square, the problems with affordable housing will not be solved by pumping tax dollars into housing. In fact, economics 101 would dictate that more money in housing would increase prices.
In fact, the fundamental current problem is housing is the broader inflation issue due to overspending and money printing in Washington. But, as noted in the article, there are numerous tools for state and local government in New Mexico and around the nation to bring down housing prices.
It’s a very SHORT list of taxes we “like” and there are ways for New Mexico to get more bang for its infrastructure buck, but considering the State’s ongoing budgetary boom (thanks largely to oil and gas production and prices), there are worse things to do in a special session than suspending New Mexico’s 17 cent/gallon gas tax (and diesel fuel tax).
On an annual basis suspending the tax would result in $240 million in savings for New Mexico motorists (p.77). Any lost revenues could easily be made up for using surplus revenues.
As Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland manages the Federal government’s onshore subsurface mineral estate – about 700 million acres (30% of the United States) held by the Bureau of Land Management. According to their website: For fiscal year (FY) 2018, sales of oil, gas, and natural gas liquids produced from the Federal and Tribal mineral estate accounted for approximately 8 percent of all oil, 9 percent of all natural gas, and 6 percent of all natural gas liquids produced in the United States.
That number could be even higher if energy production were encouraged rather than being discouraged. But Deb Haaland made her political way by opposing traditional energy and that is an inconvenient fact for the Biden Administration right now with skyrocketing energy prices.
Here are a few ways in which Secretary Haaland is nowhere to be found:
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm is at least publicly calling for ramping up production. Previously the White House was “quietly” calling for more production. But again, the head of the federal mineral estate where the feds have control over leasing and permitting is silent? Do they not want her talking about it? If not, why? Maybe because she put so much political capital into calling for a fracking ban and the Green New Deal?
Hot on the heels of Rio Grande Foundation’s analysis of the Albuquerque Public Schools’ budget, the Albuquerque Journal ran this article in which the district bemoaned the loss of students and Superintendent Elder discussed the possibility of eliminating some 300 positions.
No government agency wants to have to reduce staffing, but wasn’t it WAY back in October of 2021, the District was saying that it had too few teachers and staff? With fewer students to educate, it is incumbent on the District to reduce staffing or at least “rightsize.”
Additionally (and not mentioned in the article) is the fact that a plummeting student population (with little sign of a long-term trend in the opposite direction) SHOULD allow the District to shed some outdated buildings and other infrastructure. APS has long been a building/infrastructure-heavy district. It is time to make those decisions and free up necessary resources as well.
As seen below, on a per-pupil basis APS is spending more than ever per student. With the Legislature’s actions this year that number will go even higher in the next budget. It is time for APS to do better.
New Mexico’s US Senator Martin Heinrich’s Twitter feed is a strange place. Heinrich has carved out a bit of a niche, such as it is, by criticizing natural gas use in the home and pushing for “electrification” despite the already-high cost of electrical heat relative to gas.
Were electricity to become dominant in home heating AND vehicle “fuel” as Heinrich wishes AND for that electricity to be generated from wind and solar, you can bet that the price tag would be even higher. Nonetheless, here’s Heinrich making a bizarre point about cooking on a natural gas stove being equivalent to having a babysitter smoke in your house.
Unemployment rates for US states in January of 2022 just came out and, again, New Mexico’s unemployment rate remains at 5.9%, the nation’s highest rate.
Data for New Mexico’s more economically-robust neighbors can be found below:
According to news reports, Gov. Lujan Grisham vetoed a “pork” bill that would have included $50 million in legislative projects. The bill was passed in the 2022 session and according to news reports the move upset legislators on both sides of the aisle with Senate Minority Leader Greg Baca, a Republican from Belen, Rep. Patty Lundstrom, a Gallup Democrat who chairs the influential House Appropriations and Finance Committee, and Rep. Derrick Lente, D-Sandia Pueblo all speaking out in opposition to the Gov.’s move.
As seen below in a meme put out by the Republican Party, these local priorities run the gamut. And, as we’ve critiqued this spending in the past, there is really no process for ensuring that these tax dollars are allocated in any rational way for the betterment of our State.
So, are we “marching in the streets” in support of Lujan Grisham’s veto? Not really. Simply put, the overall budget grows State spending by more than $1 billion in a single year (way too much).
We’re also NOT joining some prominent members of the GOP (or Democratic Party) for a special or even an “extraordinary” session as candidates would have to put their campaigns on hold and there is simply too much mischief that could happen on a variety of issues in such a session, especially when one Party, the Democrats, controls all the levers of power.
So, the Gov. has made her vetoes upsetting legislators of both parties in an election year. The capital outlay process remains broken. Another session would be a mistake.
According to the most recent report from Wallethub (March 10, 2022), after two years of COVID 19 New Mexico’s unemployment rate has suffered the largest increase of any state in the nation. You can see a graphic from the report below, but also according to the report, New Mexico’s unemployment claims have jumped by an astounding 234.71 percent since the Pandemic began.
While businesses continue to post “help wanted” signs throughout New Mexico, something is very wrong with the Lujan Grisham economy. What’s really surprising is that this sad unemployment picture references an INCREASE over New Mexico’s typically-high unemployment rate.
Sen. Martin Heinrich’s Twitter feed you might believe that natural gas is the dirtiest fuel known to humankind, not one of the cleanest.
Heinrich (and AG Hector Balderas) both oppose natural gas for home heating and cooking on environmental grounds. Heinrich even attempts to claim that electricity is a cheaper means of heating your home.
But, the US Department of Energy just released a new report stating that natural gas IS indeed MUCH cheaper than electricity for heating one’s home. As seen below, natural gas at $12.09 per million Btu is more than three times cheaper than electricity at $41.79 per million Btu.
This is obvious to anyone who has lived with both types of heat, but it is good to see Heinrich’s misinformation refuted by none other than the federal Department of Energy (yet again).
Albuquerque City Council eliminated the plastic bag ban on a 6-3 vote. That’s veto-proof. Will the majority hold and override a mayoral veto?
Biden hasn’t held an onshore lease sale and is the only President in at least two decades not to have done so in a given year. Approvals for new liquefied natural gas terminals and expansions are also sitting at the Department of Energy and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, according to the American Petroleum Institute.
The Wall Street Journal reports on the numerous ways in which the Biden Administration is hindering oil and gas.
Biden is considering getting oil from Venezuela?????
Defenders of the Biden Administration’s policies fall short.
APS spent $18,594 in FY 2020. By 2022 that number is $22,877.
New Mexico has the highest unemployment rate of ANY state in the nation as of December 2021.
Rail Runner ridership fell off a cliff during COVID. What’s the latest?
The Rio Grande Foundation does its best to track the budget for large government agencies. One of the very largest in New Mexico is Albuquerque Public Schools.
We have always taken the simple approach when calculating the District’s budget: divide dollars spent by the number of students. As expected, particularly given the abandonment of APS by families with school-aged children, the District is receiving more and more money to educate fewer and fewer students.
In FY 2020, the District spent $1,475,755,646 to educate 79,366 students. That comes to $18,594.31 per student.
In FY 2022, the District spent $1,658,589,579 to educate just 72,500 students. That comes to a mind-blowing $22,877.10.
By comparison, tuition at Sandia Prep, one of the top private schools in the State cost $23,410. St. Pius X, the City of Albuquerque’s largest Catholic High School cost “just” $12,900 per student.
With more money than ever flowing into New Mexico’s government schools (and more families than ever fleeing them), it is very likely that APS’ per-pupil costs will skyrocket for years to come.
