SANTA FE – New Mexico’s state government income is surging amid an oil boom that may give legislators an extra $1.2 billion to work with as they craft the next annual budget.
Economists from three state agencies and the Legislature on Wednesday predicted that tax revenue and other government income will surpass spending obligations by “an astonishing $1.2 billion” during the fiscal year that begins in July 2019.
General fund revenues for the fiscal year that ended in July increased by nearly 15 percent over the previous year – a growth rate the state has not seen in more than a decade.
The forecast warned that the new money stems largely from a volatile oil industry, and that income from taxes and royalties could quickly erode with a crash in energy prices.
