Tax Justice Digest stories about New Mexico
In other EITC news, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (working with Nebraska Voices for Children) submitted testimony to the Nebraska Legislature's Revenue Committee and submitted several letters to local newspapers in favor of Legislative Bill 683, which would expand the state's refundable EITC from 8 percent to 15 percent of the federal credit. Tax reform and budget negotiations are continuing in Lincoln and it's unclear whether the EITC will be expanded. For more on the value of the Earned Income Tax Credit read ITEP's policy brief.
In a welcome trend, lawmakers and advocates in Connecticut, New Jersey, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Mexico, Montana, Hawaii, Utah, Ohio, and Iowa are considering enacting Earned Income Tax Credits — or expanding existing EITCs. The federal EITC has been hailed by policymakers of all stripes as an especially effective tool for lifting working families out of poverty. At the state level, the EITC offers the additional benefit of helping to offset the regressive sales and property taxes that hit low-income families hardest. To find out more about whether EITC legislation is active in your state, check out the Hatcher Group's State EITC Online Resource Center.
This November, South Dakotans will vote on the latest too-good-to-be-true policy solution — Amendment D, a constitutional amendment that would change how property is assessed for tax purposes. In most states a property's taxable value depends on what its really worth. Amendment D would confuse matters by creating two different property tax systems. Property that is sold would be assessed based on its value at the time of the sale. Property that does not change hands would be assessed by rolling back its value to 2003 levels and then increasing growth by an arbitrary 3% or the rate of inflation.
The ideas driving Amendment D are nothing new. In fact, almost identical laws have passed in New Mexico, Florida and California. These laws created a situation where one home located next to an identical home could be assessed at twice the value of the adjacent home, merely because it was sold more recently. As this excellent letter to the editor points out, South Dakota currently has several measures in place to support homeowners when property taxes are due. An expansion of the current homestead credit or a property tax circuit breaker would help those most in need of assistance.
New Mexico Fiscal Policy Project Report: Undocumented Immigrants in New Mexico: State Tax Contributions and Fiscal Concerns
Contrary to popular belief, undocumented immigrants pay taxes and are not able to receive public benefits, except for K through 12 public education for their children and emergency health care.
