Medicaid
Provider spending, utilization patterns, and anomaly detection for New Mexico.
SNAP / HR1 Compliance
Updated Feb 22, 2026State vs National PER
Projected Annual State Cost Share (effective FY2028)
Based on FY2024 SNAP Payment Error Rates. Cost sharing enacted under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (P.L. 119-94, signed July 4, 2025), effective October 2027.
Public Lands
Parcel Size Distribution (acres)
Top Agencies by Acreage
Housing Affordability
Updated Mar 30, 2026Broadband Access
Updated Mar 30, 2026Subscription Types
Drinking Water Quality
Updated Mar 30, 2026Violation Rate vs National Avg (3.6%)
Quarterly Grant Spending (FY2021-FY2025)
Top Agencies
Top Programs (CFDA)
Budget & Fiscal Health
FY2022Updated Mar 30, 2026Credit Ratings (GO Bonds)
Workforce & Employment
Updated Mar 30, 2026Fastest Growing Sectors
Shrinking Sectors
Employment data from Census ACS 1-year estimates (BLS LAUS unavailable). Trend data not available.
State of the State: 2025 vs 2026
Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham -- comparing priorities year over year
New Mexico 2025 vs. 2026: Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham's State of the State Analysis
Governor Lujan Grisham's 2026 address, her eighth and final State of the State, reflects a governor focused on cementing her legacy and finishing unresolved fights rather than introducing sweeping new policy terrain. The tone shifts from the 2025 speech's detailed, proposal-heavy approach to a more narrative, retrospective framing — heavy on accomplishments and punctuated with personal stories and humor. While many core priorities remain, the emphasis and specifics have notably evolved.
Universal childcare remains the centerpiece in both years, but the ask dropped from $205 million in 2025 to $160 million recurring in 2026, reflecting the program's November 2025 launch and the shift from building the system to sustaining it permanently. The governor celebrated that 10,000 additional kids enrolled since the launch and highlighted a UCLA study showing 70% of kindergartners on track — a data point absent in 2025. Education priorities narrowed from a broad menu (180-day school year, $50 million Indian Education Fund, summer literacy programs, new STEM initiative) to a tighter focus on literacy/math requirements, cell phone bans, and the Office of Special Education.
Public safety remained a top priority but shifted significantly in specifics. The 2025 speech emphasized criminal competency reform, civil commitment, fentanyl trafficking penalties, and a business security tax rebate. By 2026, competency reform was claimed as accomplished, and the governor pivoted to an assault weapons ban, gun dealer accountability, juvenile justice reform, and pretrial detention reform — a notably more gun-control-focused agenda. The business security tax rebate disappeared entirely. The civil commitment issue carried over but was reframed with more urgency, with Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth fast-tracking it.
Economic development shifted from announcing individual wins like Quantinuum to a broader $150 million tax credit package for next-generation technologies including quantum and fusion energy. Infrastructure ambitions grew dramatically, with a new $1.5 billion transportation bonding package and $110 million for housing (up from $50 million in development subsidies plus $50 million for homelessness in 2025). The governor also introduced a new mortgage interest-rate buydown program absent in 2025. Healthcare priorities evolved from boosting the Rural Health Care Delivery Fund ($50 million) and behavioral health expansion ($100 million) toward structural reforms: building a new UNM School of Medicine to double enrollment, eliminating gross receipts tax on medical services, and passing healthcare licensing compacts. The 2025 proposal for a state-sponsored medical malpractice insurance program was softened to broader "medical malpractice reform" language in 2026.
New Priorities in 2026
- +Assault weapons ban and gun dealer accountability measures — a significant new gun control push not mentioned in 2025.
- +Juvenile justice reform specifically targeting severe teen crimes, a new emphasis absent from the 2025 address.
- +Pretrial detention reform to keep suspects charged with violent crimes behind bars while awaiting trial.
- +$1.5 billion transportation bonding package for state-managed road projects and local improvements — a major new infrastructure proposal.
- +$150 million in tax credits for next-generation technologies like quantum computing and fusion energy, replacing the 2025 approach of announcing individual company deals.
- +Building and endowing a new UNM School of Medicine to double medical school enrollment.
- +Eliminating the gross receipts tax on medical services to improve healthcare affordability.
- +Healthcare licensing compacts to allow out-of-state providers to practice in New Mexico.
- +Mortgage interest-rate buydown program to make homeownership more affordable.
- +Blue-ribbon commission to develop strategy for leveraging investments while meeting energy demands with clean power and protecting consumers from utility rate increases.
- +Codifying the full Climate Action Plan with specific 45% pollution reduction by 2030 target, expanding beyond the 2025 call to simply codify net-zero by 2050.
- +Agricultural sustainability practices and forest management strategies as part of the climate agenda.
Dropped from 2025
- −$50 million annual investment in the Indian Education Fund to deliver resources directly to tribes and pueblos for tutoring, behavioral health, and speech therapy.
- −Comprehensive math and STEM program to match literacy strides — reduced to general 'math requirements' in 2026.
- −State-sponsored fire insurance program outside the private market to protect families from wildfire losses.
- −Strategic Water Supply initiative to clean and recycle brackish and industrial water for energy projects, manufacturing, and firefighting.
- −CYFD reform package including independent Child Protection Authority, partnership with Urban Institute for performance evaluation, and mandatory CARA interventions for substance-exposed newborns.
- −Tax exemptions and doubled stipend support (up to $900/month per child) for foster families and grandparents raising grandchildren.
- −$50 million dedicated to homelessness services including medication-assisted treatment, temporary housing, and job training — folded into a broader $110 million housing/homelessness figure.
- −Business security tax rebate to help businesses cover costs of private security personnel and equipment.
- −$50 million for the Rural Health Care Delivery Fund and $100 million for behavioral health expansion.
- −State-sponsored medical malpractice insurance program — replaced with broader 'medical malpractice reform' language.
- −State Office of Housing to coordinate and support housing development.
- −Summer literacy programs and the specific 180-day school year funding push received much less emphasis.
- −New Mexico State Fairgrounds redevelopment as a housing and mixed-use project.
Shifted Emphasis
- ↔Universal childcare shifted from a building phase ($205 million to achieve universality) to a sustaining phase ($160 million recurring to cement the now-launched program), with the governor celebrating 10,000 new enrollments since November.
- ↔Public safety rhetoric remained urgent but the policy toolkit changed markedly — from criminal competency reform, fentanyl sentencing, and business security rebates in 2025 to assault weapons bans, juvenile justice reform, pretrial detention, and gun dealer accountability in 2026.
- ↔Civil commitment appeared in both years but escalated in urgency in 2026, with the Senate Majority Leader fast-tracking it in the first week and a personal constituent letter illustrating the need.
- ↔Housing policy scaled up from $50 million in development subsidies plus $50 million for homelessness to $110 million combined plus a $1.5 billion road bonding package and a new mortgage buydown program, with zoning reform carried forward.
- ↔Climate and clean energy shifted from specific proposals (Strategic Water Supply, net-zero codification) to a more comprehensive framework including codifying the full Climate Action Plan, agricultural sustainability, forest management, and a consumer protection commission for energy costs.
- ↔Education narrowed from a wide menu of initiatives (Indian Education Fund, STEM programs, summer literacy, 180-day school year funding) to a focused push on literacy/math graduation requirements, cell phone bans, and the Office of Special Education — with the 180-day school year notably downgraded to merely deserving 'continued debate.'
- ↔Economic development messaging shifted from individual company announcements (Quantinuum) to a broader $150 million tax credit framework and emphasis on GDP growth rankings and bond rating upgrades (Moody's Aa1 achieved in 2026 vs. merely anticipated in 2025).
- ↔Healthcare shifted from expanding provider capacity through Medicaid rate increases and rural health funding to structural reforms — UNM medical school expansion, licensing compacts, GRT elimination on medical services — reflecting a move from funding to systemic change.
- ↔The overall tone shifted from a detailed policy-heavy address in 2025 to a legacy-framing retrospective in 2026, with more personal stories, humor, and emphasis on bipartisan cooperation and New Mexico as a national model.
Policy Topics Addressed
Affordability
Governor Lujan Grisham highlighted New Mexico as one of the more affordable states in America, citing nearly $1 billion in tax cuts in the last year alone including reduced gross receipts tax, expanded rebates, exempted Social Security and military retirement, and a child tax credit. She proposed eliminating gross receipts tax on medical services, a $1.5 billion transportation bonding package, $110 million for housing, zoning reform, and an interest-rate buydown program for homeowners.
Agriculture
Governor Lujan Grisham's Climate Action Plan includes supporting agricultural practices that make farming more sustainable and crops more resilient, as well as forest management strategies. The broader economic development strategy emphasizes rural communities alongside urban centers.
Economy & Jobs
Governor Lujan Grisham reported New Mexico ranks ninth nationally in GDP growth, third in business applications, and first in family income growth. She highlighted $150 million in proposed tax credits for next-generation technologies like quantum computing and fusion energy, alongside Pacific Fusion's $1 billion investment and XGS Energy's $1.2 billion geothermal partnership. She noted 150,000 jobs added during her tenure.
Education
Governor Lujan Grisham called for boosting literacy and math requirements, implementing a cell phone ban in schools, and highlighted that nearly half of elementary and middle school students now read at grade level (up from just over a third three years ago). She celebrated a 15-year high graduation rate of 80%, college enrollment growth of nearly 15%, and proposed building a new UNM medical school to double enrollment. She proposed $160 million in recurring funding for universal child care.
Environment & Energy
Governor Lujan Grisham called for codifying the Climate Action Plan to cut pollution 45% by 2030 and reach net-zero by 2050. She highlighted $10 billion in private clean energy investment, doubled wind power capacity, and noted New Mexico ranks sixth nationally in solar. She proposed a blue-ribbon commission to leverage investments while protecting consumers and called for an all-hands-on-deck approach covering industry emissions, grid modernization, agricultural sustainability, and forest management.
Government Reform
Governor Lujan Grisham proposed zoning reform to expedite and increase housing production, codifying the Climate Action Plan, and a $1.5 billion transportation bonding package. She called for medical malpractice reform, health care licensing compacts, and eliminating gross receipts tax on medical services as structural reforms to improve health care access.
Healthcare
Governor Lujan Grisham proposed comprehensive healthcare reforms including medical malpractice reform, healthcare licensing compacts, eliminating gross receipts tax on medical services, and building UNM's medical school to double enrollment. She highlighted the $130 million Rural Health Care Delivery Fund and noted the state covered additional New Mexicans through ACA plans after federal subsidy elimination. She also called for modernized civil commitment laws for those with mental illness and addiction.
Housing
Governor Lujan Grisham proposed $110 million for new housing units and homelessness initiatives, along with zoning reform to expedite and increase housing production. She also called for an interest-rate buydown program to make mortgage payments more manageable for homeowners, noting New Mexico ranks among the top dozen most affordable states for housing.
Infrastructure
Governor Lujan Grisham proposed a $1.5 billion transportation bonding package to fund major state-managed road projects and free up funds for local improvements, along with $110 million for new housing units and homelessness initiatives. She emphasized zoning reform to expedite housing production and called for codifying the Climate Action Plan including grid modernization.
Public Safety
Governor Lujan Grisham called for juvenile justice reform to address severe teen crimes, an assault weapons ban, gun dealer accountability, strengthening penalties on felons possessing firearms, and pretrial detention for those charged with violent crimes. She acknowledged progress including increased penalties for fentanyl trafficking and criminal competency reform but stated emphatically that current efforts are insufficient.
Social Services
Governor Lujan Grisham requested a $160 million recurring increase for universal child care, building on New Mexico's status as the first state to constitutionally guarantee child care as a right. She noted 10,000 additional children enrolled since announcing universal childcare in November and highlighted that New Mexico offers free childcare from birth to age 12, free school lunches, and free college. She also proposed $110 million for housing units and homelessness initiatives.
Tax & Budget
Governor Lujan Grisham highlighted nearly $1 billion in tax cuts in the prior year alone, including reducing the gross receipts tax for the first time in 40 years, expanding rebates for low-income families, creating a child tax credit, and exempting Social Security and military retirement from income tax. She proposed $150 million in tax credits for next-generation technologies like quantum computing and fusion, and called for eliminating the gross receipts tax on medical services.
Technology
Governor Lujan Grisham proposed $150 million in tax credits for next-generation technologies like quantum computing and fusion energy, citing Pacific Fusion's $1 billion investment, XGS Energy's $1.2 billion geothermal partnership, and a $120 million defense quantum partnership. She also called for a cell phone ban in schools, codification of the Climate Action Plan, and noted New Mexico's leadership in clean energy technology.
Veterans & Military
Governor Lujan Grisham noted that New Mexico exempted military retirement from income tax as part of broader affordability efforts. Her address focused primarily on child care, education, public safety, and healthcare rather than veteran-specific initiatives.
Public Health Outcomes
Updated Mar 30, 2026Better than national avgWorse than national avg
Education
Updated Mar 30, 2026NAEP Scores (2024 Nation's Report Card)
Infrastructure
Grade: AUpdated Mar 30, 2026Bridges (FHWA NBI 2025)
Campaign Finance
Contributions by Party
Top Donors
Top Recipients
Regulatory Reform Ideas
100 candidatesTop Easy Wins
- 1.Oil/Gas Permitting Streamlining (EMNRD/OCD 30-Day APD)(EMNRD/OCD / NMED / Governor's Office)
- 2.RLD Processing Deadline (30-Day Statutory)(RLD / Legislature)
- 3.Cannabis Licensing Streamlining (NMSA § 26-2C)(CCA / DOH / TRD / NMED / Governor's Office)
- 4.State Rules Act Rule Review (5-Year Cycle / Automatic Repeal)(All agencies / Legislature / SOS)
- 5.NMED Unified Permitting Portal (Cross-Media)(NMED (all bureaus) / DoIT)
IT Status Report & Strategic Plan
Comprehensive IT capability assessment with 100-day and 200-day strategic initiatives.