General Election 2018
General Obligation Bonds and Taxes

​All of these bond issues were approved by the voters in the November 6, 2018 election.

A bond represents a debt for money borrowed by a government to finance capital improvement projects. The State of New Mexico promises to repay the amount borrowed, plus interest, over a period of time for each General Obligation bond that is approved by voters. According to the Board of Finance Division of the NM Department of Finance and Administration, the specific amount of property taxes collected in a given year is attributable to a number of factors, including the amount of debt service required for existing general obligation bonds, the projected debt service required for the new bond issue, the latest assessed valuation of net taxable property, cash balances in bond debt service accounts, the date of issuance, and the actual interest rate obtained on the bond sale. Based on the assumption that all four bond issues will be passed by voters, the property tax year 2018 mil levy has been set at 1.36 mils, which is the same as the 2016 and 2017 rates. The State Board of Finance estimates that over a ten-year period, the four issues on the ballot would cost approximately $8.91 per $100,000 of asset value. Of the annual average $8.91, Bond Issue A accounts for $0.58, Bond Issue B accounts for $0.69, Bond Issue C accounts for $0.33, and Bond Issue D accounts for $7.31.

2018 Capital Projects General Obligation Bond Act The New Mexico Legislature passed the 2018 Capital Projects General Obligation Bond Act detailing projects that would be funded by these bonds. No bonds will be issued or sold under the act until the state’s registered voters have voted upon and approved the bonds. Each bond is voted upon separately with a “For” or “Against” question.

Summary: The four 2018 bond issues ask for voter approval to issue general obligation bonds as follows: Bond Issue A, in an amount not to exceed $10,770,000 to make capital expenditures for certain senior citizen facility improvements, construction, and equipment acquisition projects; Bond Issue B, in an amount not to exceed $12,876,000 to make capital expenditures for academic, public school, tribal, and public library resource acquisitions; Bond Issue C, in an amount not to exceed $6,137,000 to make capital expenditures for the purchase of school buses; and Bond Issue D, in an amount not to exceed $136,230,000 to make capital expenditures for certain higher education , special schools and tribal schools capital improvements and acquisitions.

The total for all four questions, including bond issuance costs, is $166,013,000.

Bond Question A – Aging and Long-Term Services Department The 2018 Capital Projects General Obligation Bond Act authorizes the issuance and sale of senior citizen facility improvement, construction and equipment acquisition bonds. Shall the state be authorized to issue general obligation bonds in an amount not to exceed ten million seven hundred seventy thousand dollars ($10,770,000) to make capital expenditures for certain senior citizen facility improvement, construction and equipment acquisition projects and provide for a general property tax imposition and levy for the payment of principal of, interest on and expenses incurred in connection with the issuance of the bonds and the collection of the tax as permitted by law?

Includes $1,300,000 to plan, design, construct, equip and furnish, including demolition, the Abedon Lopez senior center in Santa Cruz in Santa Fe County.

Bond Question B – Library Acquisitions The 2018 Capital Projects General Obligation Bond Act authorizes the issuance and sale of library acquisition bonds. Shall the state be authorized to issue general obligation bonds in an amount not to exceed twelve million eight hundred seventy- six thousand dollars ($12,876,000) to make capital expenditures for academic, public school, tribal and public library resource acquisitions and provide for a general property tax imposition and levy for the payment of principal of, interest on and expenses incurred in connection with the issuance of the bonds and the collection of the tax as permitted by law?

Benefits public libraries statewide.     

Bond Question C – School Buses The 2018 Capital Projects General Obligation Bond Act authorizes the issuance and sale of bonds for the purchase of school buses. Shall the state be authorized to issue general obligation bonds in an amount not to exceed six million one hundred thirty- seven thousand dollars ($6,137,000) to make capital expenditures for the purchase of school buses and provide for a general property tax imposition and levy for the payment of principal of, interest on and expenses incurred in connection with the issuance of the bonds and the collection of the tax as permitted by law?

Benefits public school buses statewide.

Bond Question D – Higher Education Facilities The 2018 Capital Projects General Obligation Bond Act authorizes the issuance and sale of higher education, special schools and tribal schools capital improvement and acquisition bonds. Shall the state be authorized to issue general obligation bonds in an amount not to exceed one hundred thirty- six million two hundred thirty thousand dollars ($136,230,000) to make capital expenditures for certain higher education, special schools and tribal schools capital improvements and acquisitions and provide for a general property tax imposition and levy for the payment of principal of, interest on and expenses incurred in connection with the issuance of the bonds and the collection of the tax as permitted by law?

Includes a Total of $8,500,000 for Santa Fe County: 
Santa Fe Indian School — $900,000: Improve safety and security when entering and exiting the campus with new traffic lanes, curb and gutter to improve storm drainage and upgraded lighting and sidewalks; also relocate and install technology upgrades at campus security check point.
New Mexico School for the Deaf — $1,800,000: Renovation of Lars M. Larson Student Activity Center and Residential Complex, a "home away from home" for students which houses a gym, and study and workshop/presentation areas as well as cottage-style residences for students, visiting families and preschoolers from throughout New Mexico.
Santa Fe Community College — $5,000,000: Bond D funding will provide safety, energy efficiency and infrastructure improvements to the SFCC campus, including continuation of the Microgrid Project, upgrades to cooling towers, installation of alternative clean power generation sources, and better fire protection.
Institute of American Indian Arts — $800,000: Replacement of 15 old evaporative cooling with energy and efficient units; addition of ADA-compliant workstations for students who require wheelchair access, and visual presentation systems in several classrooms for students who are visually, hearing, learning disabled or have PTSD.


Details of all projects were/will be published in the Santa Fe New Mexican on October 2, 9, 16, and 23, in Legal #84905.

Each question set forth in this section includes a specific work or object to be financed by the bonds. If any such question is not approved by a majority vote of the electorate at the state’s 2018 general election, the issuance of bonds for the work or object specified by the question shall be excluded from and shall not be part of the 2018 Capital Projects General Obligation Bond Act. The failure of a question to be approved the electorate at the 2018 general election shall not affect those questions that are approved at the election.

​LWVNM, 9/11/18. Information provided by the NM Department of Finance and Administration.