How something as small as a sales tax could take food away from New Mexicans

Amber Wallin, MPA, is the KIDS COUNT Program Director for NM Voices for Children. Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on all of the blessings we enjoy—our families, our health, and the bounty of our good earth and beautiful state. It’s also a time that many of us think about those who are less fortunate […]

How something as small as a sales tax could take food away from New Mexicans

Amber Wallin, MPA, is the KIDS COUNT Program Director for NM Voices for Children.

Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on all of the blessings we enjoy—our families, our health, and the bounty of our good earth and beautiful state. It’s also a time that many of us think about those who are less fortunate and a time to donate to the charities that help them.

Amber Wallin, MPA,  KIDS COUNT Director for New Mexico Voices for Children.
Amber Wallin, MPA, KIDS COUNT Director for New Mexico Voices for Children.

But hard times know no season, and many New Mexicans experience hunger throughout the year. These people—many of them children, seniors, and hard-working parents—already live on the margins, often just one financial setback away from disaster. Unfortunately, some New Mexico lawmakers are considering a policy change that could make the lives of these vulnerable New Mexicans even tougher. They are considering taxing food.

Like most states, New Mexico does not tax the food you purchase at the grocery store. The state stopped taxing food back in 2004, but the subject has come up again in recent years, and is likely to be debated during the 2016 legislative session. While we agree that the state needs to raise sufficient revenue for important services, we believe this is one of the more harmful ways to do it.

Knowing that sales taxes hit those with the least money the hardest, we decided to look into how a tax on food might impact the health of low-income kids and families in New Mexico. Could something that costs as little as $25 a month really hurt people? We conducted a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) to answer that question and the results were troubling.

In addition to conducting extensive research and data analysis, one of the steps of an HIA is to gather input from stakeholders who will be impacted. To that end, we held focus groups in three New Mexico cities—Albuquerque, Gallup and Vado—with New Mexicans who either earn very low incomes, are “food insecure” (meaning they don’t always have enough healthy food to eat), or are eligible for SNAP benefits (food stamps). These people are the experts on how to stretch their food dollars. Even so, every dollar has its limits.

“Twenty-five dollars doesn’t seem like a lot,” said one participant in Albuquerque, “until you don’t have a dollar to your name. Then, it is like a small fortune.”

One participant in Gallup said that $25 was the amount they spend on transportation. “I’d have to hitchhike or be back on foot.”

They talked about already making tough decisions when juggling their expenses.

“Twenty-five dollars means skipping a prescription. Already I don’t feel well and ask myself, ‘how come I don’t feel well?’ And it’s because I passed on the prescription to buy groceries,” said an Albuquerque participant.

“It is either buying food or paying our utility bill,” said a participant in Gallup.

They know which foods are healthy and which aren’t, but they also have to make tough decisions about what kinds of food to buy.

“Even if [the tax] is only 15 or 20 bucks a month, then that’s a few more fruits and vegetables that I would’ve gotten before. And that’s important,” said an Albuquerque participant.

“I want to eat better, I want to be healthy, but I can’t afford it,” said a Gallup participant.

And they know how food insecurity harms their children.

“At school there are times when some of the kids can’t focus because they don’t get to eat dinner because their parents don’t have money for food,” said a participant from Gallup.

“[My son] gets a lot of not-great-for-him food, just to make sure he’s getting enough to eat,” said an Albuquerque parent.

Every policy decision our lawmakers make—whether it’s to tax food, or raise the minimum wage, or spend less money on child care—has very real consequences for real people. In the case of a food tax, the consequences for some New Mexicans could be serious. As one participant in Vado put it, “Food is not a luxury—it is a necessity for human beings. That should not be taxed in any way.”

We hope that when our lawmakers gather in Santa Fe next January, they will remember those New Mexicans. We hope that the spirit of the holidays—the spirit of gratitude for what they have and the spirit of generosity for those who have less—will still be with them. And we hope they will find another way to raise revenue that doesn’t potentially take food out of the mouths of New Mexico’s already hungry children.

We're ad free

That means that we rely on support from readers like you. Help us keep reporting on the most important New Mexico Stories by donating today.

Related

Emily’s List endorses seven candidates for Legislature

Emily’s List endorses seven candidates for Legislature

Emily’s List, a nonprofit that supports women candidates and reproductive rights, endorsed seven incumbents facing general election opponents in New Mexico legislative elections. All…
Equality New Mexico endorses 15 legislative candidates

Equality New Mexico endorses 15 legislative candidates

A New Mexico-based LGBTQ rights organization endorsed 15 candidates for state House and Senate seats for the 2024 elections.  Marshall Martinez, executive director of…
Lujan Grisham pocket vetoes two bills

Lujan Grisham pocket vetoes two bills

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham pocket vetoed two bills the legislature passed this legislative session: one changing the Cybersecurity Act and the other concerning law…
BLM announces final methane waste rule

BLM announces final methane waste rule

The federal Bureau of Land Management announced its final methane waste rule on Wednesday. These new regulations clamp down on the practice of venting…
What consumers, farmers should know about the flu impacting dairy cows

What consumers, farmers should know about the flu impacting dairy cows

Migrating birds appear to have caused a virus in dairy cattle that is causing reduced milk production. So far, the disease, which initially started…
Republicans seek to limit national monument designations

Republicans seek to limit national monument designations

Republican-backed legislation in the U.S. Congress would make it harder for the government to designate new national monuments. The proposed Congressional Oversight of the…
Amid new graduation requirements, what do high schoolers want to learn?

Amid new graduation requirements, what do high schoolers want to learn?

By Margaret O’Hara, The Santa Fe New Mexican The main things that bring Brayan Chavez to school every day: Seeing, talking to and engaging with…
Special ed teachers hope lawmakers OK pay raises, admin changes

Special ed teachers hope lawmakers OK pay raises, admin changes

By Margaret O’Hara, The Santa Fe New Mexican Brittany Behenna Griffith has a laundry list of adjectives to describe the ideal special education teacher:…
Lawmakers must find consensus on competing education spending plans

Lawmakers must find consensus on competing education spending plans

By Margaret O’Hara, The Santa Fe New Mexican A challenging task awaits New Mexico lawmakers in the next 30 days: Reconciling three very different…
Health workers fear it’s profits before protection as CDC revisits airborne transmission

Health workers fear it’s profits before protection as CDC revisits airborne transmission

Amy Maxmen, KFF Health News Four years after hospitals in New York City overflowed with covid-19 patients, emergency physician Sonya Stokes remains shaken by…
Lujan Grisham, Biden admin announce $10 million in federal funds for tribes, pueblos

Lujan Grisham, Biden admin announce $10 million in federal funds for tribes, pueblos

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Friday $10 million in funding from the federal American Rescue Plan Act was awarded to six tribal nations and…
Proposal to curb executive powers moves to House Judiciary

Proposal to curb executive powers moves to House Judiciary

The House Government, Elections and Indian Affairs Committee discussed a potential constitutional amendment that seeks to limit the governor’s executive powers. The committee approved…
U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

The U.S. Supreme Court heard the case about the regulations around mifepristone, one of a two-step regime for abortion medication, on Tuesday. FDA v.…
At stake in mifepristone case: Abortion, FDA’s authority, and return to 1873 obscenity law

At stake in mifepristone case: Abortion, FDA’s authority, and return to 1873 obscenity law

Lawyers from the conservative Christian group that won the case to overturn Roe v. Wade are returning to the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday in pursuit…
Supreme Court to hear two abortion cases this spring

Supreme Court to hear two abortion cases this spring

Later this month, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on the case against the abortion medication mifepristone. It will hear a second…
New Mexico Medicaid to cover cost of over-the-counter oral contraception

New Mexico Medicaid to cover cost of over-the-counter oral contraception

New Mexico Medicaid announced on Wednesday that it will cover the cost of Opill, the first oral contraception approved for over-the-counter use. It is…
U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

The U.S. Supreme Court heard the case about the regulations around mifepristone, one of a two-step regime for abortion medication, on Tuesday. FDA v.…
At stake in mifepristone case: Abortion, FDA’s authority, and return to 1873 obscenity law

At stake in mifepristone case: Abortion, FDA’s authority, and return to 1873 obscenity law

Lawyers from the conservative Christian group that won the case to overturn Roe v. Wade are returning to the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday in pursuit…
San Juan County, Navajo Nation settle redistricting case

San Juan County, Navajo Nation settle redistricting case

The Navajo Nation and San Juan County reached an agreement Monday about commission districts after the tribe alleged that its members were not adequately…
MIT ranks NM elections most well-run in the U.S.

MIT ranks NM elections most well-run in the U.S.

New Mexico’s 2022 election was ranked most well-run in the country by Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Election Data and Science Lab’s Elections Performance Index.…
Emily’s List endorses seven candidates for Legislature

Emily’s List endorses seven candidates for Legislature

Emily’s List, a nonprofit that supports women candidates and reproductive rights, endorsed seven incumbents facing general election opponents in New Mexico legislative elections. All…
BLM announces final methane waste rule

BLM announces final methane waste rule

The federal Bureau of Land Management announced its final methane waste rule on Wednesday. These new regulations clamp down on the practice of venting…
U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

U.S. Supreme Court hears case to restrict access to medication abortion

The U.S. Supreme Court heard the case about the regulations around mifepristone, one of a two-step regime for abortion medication, on Tuesday. FDA v.…
What consumers, farmers should know about the flu impacting dairy cows

What consumers, farmers should know about the flu impacting dairy cows

Migrating birds appear to have caused a virus in dairy cattle that is causing reduced milk production. So far, the disease, which initially started…

GET INVOLVED

© 2023 New Mexico Political Report