A large majority of New Mexicans do not want money to be cut from the education budget, even when told that New Mexico is facing “a budget deficit of around $650 million.” That’s according to a poll conducted by Research & Polling for New Mexico Education Partners.

A majority of respondents said they would support increasing taxes tobacco and alcohol taxes and taxes on out-of-state corporations.

The teacher's poll polling report.

The teacher's poll polling report.

The poll of 400 registered voters shows that 81 percent think the stage budget should be balanced “without cutting public school funding.”

The question asked was, “The state of New Mexico has a budget deficit of around $650 million for the current fiscal year. Do you feel that public school funding should be cut to help balance the budget or do you feel that hte state budget should be balanced without cutting public school funding?”

Of that, 13 percent said that public school funding should be cut while 3 percent said it “depends” while 3 percent did not or would not say.

Even more respondents, 88 percent, opposed cutting “teacher and other school employees’ salaries” as part of a budget balancing plan. Just 6 percent said salary cuts should be included, while 3 percent said it “depends” and 3 percent did not know or would not say.

Of the five proposals for ways to increase funding for public schools, three had a majority of support. Seventy percent supported an increase on tobacco and alcohol taxes, 61 percent supported increasing taxes on out-of-state corporations and 55 percent supporting taking money out of the state’s permanent funds.

Rep. Brian Egolf told NMI on Saturday that he would introduce bills on Sunday raising taxes on tobacco and alcohol.

A plurality of respondents, 49 percent, said they would “support or oppose rolling back the [2003] tax cuts for higher income New Mexicans.”

A minority, 44 percent, supported an increase in the sales tax by three quarters of a percent.

New Mexico Education Partners is a coalition of organizations, including AFT New Mexico, the National Education Association-New Mexico, the New Mexico Coalition of School Administrators, the New Mexico PTA and the New Mexico School Boards Association.

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