Up to $1,000 in household relief to go to New Mexico taxpayers

SANTA FE – Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and legislative leadership on Monday announced the agenda for the upcoming special session slated to begin tomorrow, which will be squarely focused on providing economic relief to New Mexico households as prices remain high around the country.

“We stand together in our support of New Mexico families by providing meaningful financial relief in the face of rising prices, and we have a real opportunity to ease the burdens so many are currently experiencing. Our state is in a good position financially, and we should do all we can to ensure that New Mexicans are feeling that success too,” said Gov. Lujan Grisham.

“Every New Mexican is feeling it: at the pump, at the grocery store and paying the power bill. Coupled with the relief we provided during the regular session through rebates and tax cuts, these common-sense efforts will make a real difference in the lives of New Mexicans around our state.”

The governor and legislative leadership are proposing to deliver hundreds of millions of dollars in household relief to New Mexicans through $500 payments to single filers and $1,000 for joint filers, which will likely be distributed in two parts in the spring and fall. Together with the rebate checks that will be distributed in July as a result of legislation enacted by Gov. Lujan Grisham last month, over 1.4 million New Mexicans will receive up to $1,500 in household relief to help offset the high price of gas, groceries and goods.

“Many New Mexicans will already be receiving rebates based on legislation we passed in February. But Governor Lujan Grisham and the Legislature recognize that we are now in a position do more, and this additional relief will have an immediate and positive impact on households across the state while keeping money moving through our economy,” said Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth and Senate President Pro Tempore Mimi Stewart in a joint statement. “And through a collaborative effort with our colleagues in the House and the Governor’s office, we’ve reworked the original junior bill to see that the statewide projects get funded as intended while including new provisions to provide for additional transparency.”

“Despite the record revenues to our state, too many New Mexicans are still struggling to make ends meet,” said Speaker of the House Brian Egolf. “This special session allows us build on the work we did in the regular session to ensure the people of New Mexico benefit from state revenues by investing in critical projects that will benefit communities across the state and providing much needed relief in the face of rising fuel costs.”

The Legislature will also consider a measure to cut RailRunner ticket costs for the next several months to provide an affordable option to commuters as gas prices remain high.

Lastly, state lawmakers will revisit the revised supplemental spending “junior” bill, providing $50 million for community projects and programming throughout the state. The governor and legislative leadership worked in partnership to agree on parameters for a revised bill, including ensuring that projects are appropriately budgeted as recurring or non-recurring funding, after the governor raised concerns over transparency and accountability. The bill will include new requirements that ensure transparency for each project.