Thursday's Albuquerque Journal [Subscription] featured a story about "tax lightning" and the potential affect on the county should property values be rolled back to 2002 levels. Just like any government body, the county is concerned that their gravy train is about to jump the tracks.
According to the Journal County Manager Thaddeus Lucero is predicting a $30 Million revenue hit should the rollback occur. And predictably, the county manager is predicting that the county would be "out of business" and would threaten basic services.
How come every time a government lives beyond its means they threaten the public with the loss of basic services?
The dirty little secret is that the county's budget has risen from $128 Million in 2005 to around $350 Million in 2010. And despite the huge increase in spending and a robust economy through 2008, increases in spending outpaced increases in revenue. Have you noticed a 200% increase in county services?
Just like every other government, the county has a spending problem. A less than 10% drop in revenue shouldn't bring the county to a halt if the county refocuses its priorities on the duties and services that it should be fully funding in the first place.
