Personal income in New Mexico showed a one percent increase (seasonally adjusted) in the third quarter of 2010 from the second quarter of 2010. That’s down from 1.9% growth in the second quarter. The third quarter performance was good for 11th place nationally.
Net earnings contributed 60% of the one percent increase with 40% from transfer payments such as unemployment and welfare.
At 0.14%, the farm sector showed the largest increase for the third quarter. Mining and construction earnings both grew 0.07%.
Earnings of federal civilian employees dropped 0.12% during the quarter.
Further earnings growth in the state will be hit by the wage freeze for national laboratory employees announced yesterday. The move affects about 17,000 New Mexicans, roughly split between Sandia National Laboratories and Los Alamos National Laboratory. National laboratory employees often earn more than $100,000.
A previously announced freeze hit 32,000 federal government employees in the state. The two freezes, affect 6.1% of the state’s wage earners.
The announcement of the freeze including a gratuitous cheap shot at former President George W. Bush and demonstrated the Obama administration’s continued unwillingness to accept responsibility for its financial policies after nearly two years in office.
As reported in the Albuquerque Journal, the release from DOE Secretary Steven Chu said, “As our nation continues to recover from these challenging economic times and we work to address the massive deficits we inherited….”
Dr. Chu conveniently overlooks the fact that the Obama administration’s deficit spending makes George W. Bush look like an amateur.
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