In Valencia County, we’ve long understood the phrase “elections have consequences.” It’s usually invoked in the context of policy, priorities, or political direction. But this month, we’re seeing a more literal—and painful—consequence of who we elect to serve in our assessor’s office, treasurer’s office, and county commission.
A basic, fundamental responsibility of county government is to calculate property taxes correctly. That didn’t happen this year.
According to the Valencia County Assessor, an incorrect value was submitted to the State of New Mexico. When the State returned the mill levy rates, the near doubling of the residential mill levy went unnoticed. The county commission then approved those erroneous levies, again without catching the massive discrepancy. Finally, the treasurer sent out the tax bills as if everything were normal.
At every stage—submission, review, approval, and distribution—the error could have been caught. It never was.
This wasn’t one mistake. It was a cascade of failures.
And in a county with high poverty rates, thousands of retirees on fixed incomes, working families living paycheck to paycheck, and homeowners already stretched thin, the result has been financial shock and emotional stress. Many residents have escrow accounts that already paid the inflated amount. Others are terrified they won’t be able to cover the bill due December 10th. And the response so far—“we are trying to correct it”—does little to undo the damage or restore trust.
We deserve better than “try.”
We deserve competence. We deserve oversight. We deserve leaders who catch problems before they land on the backs of taxpayers.
While the Assessor has publicly taken responsibility—which is appreciated—the truth is that responsibility is shared. The Treasurer’s Office chose to send out bills that were clearly out of line with historical precedent. The County Commission approved mill levies that should have set off alarms. This wasn’t a small rounding error; this was a glaring, outsized change. Any elected official paying attention should have questioned it.
If no one noticed, that’s negligence.
If someone noticed and approved it anyway, that’s worse.
Either way, the public bears the consequences of elected officials failing to perform the most basic duties of their offices.
And that brings us back to this essential point: Elections have consequences.
We elect the County Assessor.
We elect the County Treasurer.
We elect our Commissioners.
They oversee our taxes, our budget, and the systems that determine whether residents remain secure in their homes—or get pushed to the brink by a clerical failure.
This incident should not be brushed aside as an unfortunate blunder. It should catalyze a demand for:
1. Full transparency about how the error occurred and who signed off at each stage.
2. A public, independent review of internal processes within the Assessor’s Office, the Treasurer’s Office, and the County Commission.
3. Clear, written corrective procedures so that this never happens again.
**4. Accountability—not just apologies—from the officials involved.
Valencia County homeowners deserve a government that double-checks numbers before they hit our wallets. We deserve elected officials who understand that “I didn’t catch it” is not an acceptable explanation when thousands of families are harmed.
Trust is easy to lose and hard to regain. Our leaders now have an obligation to earn it back.
And voters have an obligation, going forward, to remember moments like this—moments when the people elected to protect us instead let us down.
Because elections do have consequences.
And this year, those consequences landed in our mailboxes.
