John Lettieri, President and CEO of Economic Innovation Group | Official Website
John Lettieri, President and CEO of Economic Innovation Group | Official Website
Among all government transfer programs, Income Maintenance was the second smallest contributor in the county. Medicaid was the largest contributor, totaling $269.53 million, equating to $10,000 per capita and making up 45.8% of total transfers.
Comparatively, Income Maintenance transfers across New Mexico amounted to $4.59 billion, ranking lowest among all transfer types within the state. This translates to an average of $2,172 per capita, or 15.7% of total government transfers. Including all transfer types, government transfer payments totaled $29.25 billion, accounting for 26.5% of residents’ total income, with an average of $13,842 per resident.
Social Security was the second largest contributor in San Miguel County in 2022, accounting for $115.9 million, averaging $4,300 per capita, representing 19.7% of transfers. Medicare transfers provided another $76.04 million, averaging $2,821 per capita and comprising 12.9% of government support, making them the smallest contributors.
Government transfer payments are non-repayable funds provided by federal, state, or local governments to support individuals in need. These payments aim to stabilize economic conditions and provide financial support during hardships. Key programs include Social Security transfers (retirement benefits), Medicare transfers (healthcare for seniors), Medicaid transfers (healthcare for low-income individuals), and income maintenance transfers (financial assistance for basic needs).
With 25.3% of the population aged 65 and older, San Miguel County has a significant demand for programs like Social Security and Medicare. Despite this aid, the total per capita income in San Miguel County, excluding government transfers was $23,629, which is far below the county's total income of $45,444, emphasizing the role of government transfers in overall income.
When comparing 2022 to the previous year, San Miguel County saw an increase in its Income Maintenance transfer dependency by 0.4%, reflecting both rising transfer amounts and stagnating or insufficient other sources of income.
Government transfers have long been a modest financial safety net, historically comprising only a small fraction of Americans' income. However, since the 1970s—sometimes dubbed the “Great Transfer-mation”—dependency has surged from 8.2% (or $2,022 per capita in inflation-adjusted 2022 dollars) in 1970 to 17.6% (or $11,542 per capita) in 2022 nationwide. In San Miguel County, reliance on government transfers has similarly increased from 19.2% (or $2,421 per capita) in 1970 to 48% (or $21,815 per capita) in 2022, reflecting broader national trends.
According to the Economic Innovation Group’s analysis, these trends are not merely short-term responses to economic pressures but rather reflect a profound, long-term transformation in how government support is integrated into American life. The study illustrates that structural shifts—from rising healthcare expenses and demographic changes to stagnant wages—have significantly increased dependency on government transfers.
| County | Rank | Dependency on Transfers (%) | % Population 65+ | Social Security Transfers (%) | Medicare Transfers (%) | Medicaid Transfers (%) | Income Maintenance Transfers (%) | Per Capita Transfers ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bernalillo County | 1 | 23% | 18.3% | 6.8% | 4.1% | 6.1% | 3.7% | $12,755 |
| Dona Ana County | 2 | 31.2% | 17% | 7.4% | 5.7% | 9% | 5.8% | $14,130 |
| Santa Fe County | 3 | 18% | 28.1% | 7.3% | 3.9% | 3.3% | 2.2% | $13,479 |
| Sandoval County | 4 | 21.9% | 20% | 8% | 4.5% | 3.7% | 2.9% | $11,622 |
| San Juan County | 5 | 30.8% | 16.9% | 8.3% | 6.2% | 8.9% | 4.6% | $13,384 |
| Valencia County | 6 | 33.2% | 18.7% | 8.5% | 5% | 10.7% | 5.6% | $14,588 |
| McKinley County | 7 | 43.5% | 13.7% | 6.9% | 6.4% | 17.5% | 8.5% | $15,175 |
| Chaves County | 8 | 31.9% | 16.5% | 6.9% | 5.3% | 12.4% | 5.4% | $15,250 |
| Otero County | 9 | 30.3% | 17.5% | 8.1% | 6.2% | 6.8% | 4.6% | $12,660 |
| Lea County | 10 | 21.6% | 11.7% | 4.6% | 3.5% | 8.3% | 3.8% | $11,423 |
| Eddy County | 11 | 18.8% | 14.9% | 4.7% | 3.4% | 6.6% | 3% | $12,657 |
| Rio Arriba County | 12 | 40.2% | 22% | 9.6% | 6.1% | 15.8% | 6.4% | $17,460 |
| Curry County | 13 | 26.9% | 13.5% | 4.9% | 4.2% | 9.5% | 4.6% | $14,428 |
| San Miguel County | 14 | 48% | 25.3% | 9.5% | 6.2% | 22% | 7% | $21,815 |
| Taos County | 15 | 35.4% | 30.5% | 10.8% | 6.7% | 10.8% | 4.5% | $16,575 |
| Grant County | 16 | 39.8% | 30.4% | 11.3% | 7.2% | 13.3% | 4.6% | $20,676 |
| Luna County | 17 | 43.7% | 20.5% | 10.8% | 8.4% | 12.7% | 8.7% | $16,356 |
| Cibola County | 18 | 43.9% | 17.9% | 9.5% | 8% | 15.4% | 7.3% | $14,991 |
| Lincoln County | 19 | 34.5% | 31.8% | 11.7% | 7.9% | 8.2% | 4.1% | $17,322 |
| Socorro County | 20 | 41.1% | 21% | 8.9% | 6.9% | 14.8% | 7.5% | $17,781 |
| Sierra County | 21 | 51% | 38.1% | 13.9% | 10.8% | 16% | 6% | $24,783 |
| Roosevelt County | 22 | 29% | 15.2% | 5.4% | 4.7% | 11.2% | 4.6% | $14,398 |
| Torrance County | 23 | 39% | 23.1% | 9.6% | 5.8% | 13.5% | 7% | $16,854 |
| Colfax County | 24 | 37.5% | 28.8% | 10.9% | 8.6% | 10.6% | 4.3% | $18,870 |
| Quay County | 25 | 44.4% | 27.2% | 10.4% | 8.8% | 15.3% | 6.2% | $20,947 |
| Los Alamos County | 26 | 8.9% | 18.6% | 4.4% | 2% | 0.9% | 0.8% | $7,677 |
| Mora County | 27 | 45.2% | 32.1% | 11.6% | 6.8% | 17.8% | 5.3% | $23,421 |
| Guadalupe County | 28 | 45.7% | 21.1% | 8.8% | 6.5% | 21.1% | 6.2% | $19,519 |
| Hidalgo County | 29 | 37% | 23.1% | 8.7% | 5.8% | 15% | 5.5% | $19,660 |
| Catron County | 30 | 41.3% | 42.8% | 17.4% | 9.9% | 5% | 4.2% | $16,302 |
| Union County | 31 | 36.2% | 23.5% | 9.3% | 9.2% | 10.8% | 4.1% | $15,669 |
| De Baca County | 32 | 37.3% | 29% | 9.1% | 6% | 14.3% | 4.7% | $20,909 |
| Harding County | 33 | 32.2% | 41.2% | 11.8% | 7.6% | 5.9% | 3.4% | $14,871 |
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