New Mexico gets $42M through tax compensation program

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The U.S. government is sending to New Mexico more than $42 million as part of a program designed to compensate local governments for the inability to collect property taxes on federally-owned land within their boundaries.

The U.S. Interior Department announced the funding Wednesday, saying it marked the largest amount ever allocated through the payments in lieu of taxes program.

Thirty-two local governments in the state will share in the funding, which helps to pay for public safety, social programs and other basic services.

The annual payments are calculated based on the acreage of federal land within each county or jurisdiction and the population of that county or jurisdiction. Federal lands include national forests, national monuments and parks, national wildlife refuges and areas managed by the Bureau of Land Management.