Economics ETDs

Publication Date

Summer 7-28-2026

Abstract

This study examines how property-value-based assessments within a large western irrigation and flood-control district distribute fiscal burdens across property owners. The empirical analysis is restricted to Bernalillo County within the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District (MRGCD), using parcel-level administrative data from fiscal year 2025 merged with 2021 irrigation service records and geospatial information. The analysis classifies 34,397 parcels by irrigation status, agricultural valuation enrollment, and primary use to evaluate whether non-irrigating residential and commercial parcels, including renter-occupied properties that lack direct irrigation access, bear a disproportionate share of financial responsibility for a district whose first listed priority under their primary stated mission is agricultural water delivery. Spatial statistical methods, including Global Moran's~$I$ and Local Indicators of Spatial Association (LISA), identify non-random geographic clustering in effective tax burdens. Non-irrigable parcels are found to bear roughly 90 percent of the district's ad valorem revenue coming from Bernalillo county despite receiving no direct irrigation benefit. Keywords: Tax incidence; MRGCD; ad valorem taxation; spatial autocorrelation; agricultural valuation; fiscal equity; Bernalillo County; irrigation districts; Global Moran's I; LISA; property tax; land tax

Degree Name

Economics

Level of Degree

Masters

Department Name

Department of Economics

First Committee Member (Chair)

Robert Berrens

Second Committee Member

Jingjing Wang

Third Committee Member

David van der Goes

Fourth Committee Member

Su Zhang

Language

English

Keywords

Tax incidence, MRGCD, spatial autocorrelation, agricultural valuation, fiscal equity, Bernalillo County

Document Type

Thesis

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