Some lawmakers want to make another attempt to increase taxes on alcohol sales in the upcoming legislative session.
Industry leaders met with some lawmakers Wednesday to state their case against the tax.
Premier Distributing Regional Vice President Alan Markey pointed out that New Mexico already has higher taxes on beer, wine, and spirits than any neighboring states, with a lower median income to boot.
He said the suggested increase of about 25 cents per drink would make a 30 pack of beer, for example, almost 8 dollars more expensive.
“Which, in a time when consumers are challenged by the cost of living, would be a significant impact on any consumer,” he said.
But that’s exactly the point according to State Representative Joanne Ferrary. She said New Mexico has had among the worst alcohol related fatalities in the nation for the last 40 years.
“Raising alcoholic size taxes by just a quarter per drink would reduce alcohol consumption by 10% and generate over $250 million in annual funds to directly help the communities impacted the most by alcohol,” she said.
During the last legislative session She sponsored a bill that stalled out which would have changed alcohol taxes. She said she’ll be sponsoring a new bill that has been changed and adjusted based on feedback on the last bill.
The alcohol tax would still be increased by about 25 cents total, but it would come from two different taxes.
The first would be about an additional five cents to match inflation from the last time the tax was updated about 30 years ago. That rate would be adjusted every three years going forward.
On top of that, what she called a temporary public health surtax would be added on top to pay for public health costs, and addiction and recovery services. That would only be in place until the land of enchantment’s alcohol fatalities match the national average.
Support for this coverage comes from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
