Report: Rising tax protests pose ‘sizable risk’ to budget

The number of people and businesses protesting their taxes has created “sizable risk” to New Mexico’s general operating budget, nonpartisan legislative analysts say. A report released Monday estimates that over $440 million in taxes are under protest now by taxpayers who have had their refunds denied or are otherwise challenging their tax bills. If even one-third of the protests prove successful, analysts said, the state’s general fund could take a hit of roughly $147 million, or about 2 percent of the $6.1 billion budget.