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Cliff-Zone Families
59,644
Total Wage Suppression
$43.4M
State Avg Cliff Zone
19.6%
The benefits cliff — sometimes called the welfare cliff or cliff effect — occurs when families lose public benefits faster than they can replace them through increased earnings. In New Mexico, an estimated 59,644 families across 33 counties earn between 100–200% of the Federal Poverty Level, where benefits like SNAP, Medicaid, childcare subsidies, and housing assistance phase out. The CLIFF Index measures this exposure at the county level, including peak marginal effective tax rates, wage suppression estimates, and advancement thresholds. Click any county below for the full diagnostic report.
| CountyCounty↕ | PopulationPopulation↕ | Cliff Zone %Cliff Zone %↕ | Families AffectedFamilies↓ | Wage SuppressionWage Gap↕ | Peak METRPeak METR↕ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bernalillo County | 673,930 | 17.4% | 17,437 | $12.7M | 413% |
| Doña Ana County | 224,266 | 22.3% | 7,679 | $5.6M | 413% |
| San Juan County | 120,942 | 22.8% | 3,711 | $2.7M | 413% |
| Sandoval County | 153,604 | 14.3% | 3,434 | $2.5M | 413% |
| Santa Fe County | 156,105 | 15.6% | 3,193 | $2.3M | 413% |
| Valencia County | 78,458 | 24.4% | 2,949 | $2.1M | 413% |
| Lea County | 73,733 | 21.7% | 2,447 | $1.8M | 413% |
| McKinley County | 70,431 | 25.5% | 2,428 | $1.8M | 413% |
| Chaves County | 64,217 | 25.1% | 2,404 | $1.8M | 413% |
| Otero County | 68,816 | 22.3% | 2,142 | $1.6M | 413% |
| Curry County | 47,638 | 19.5% | 1,500 | $1.1M | 413% |
| Eddy County | 61,105 | 14.8% | 1,471 | $1.1M | 413% |
| Rio Arriba County | 40,070 | 21.4% | 1,177 | $857K | 413% |
| Taos County | 34,543 | 22.0% | 949 | $691K | 413% |
| Luna County | 25,611 | 30.0% | 927 | $675K | 413% |
| Grant County | 27,775 | 24.8% | 720 | $524K | 413% |
| Roosevelt County | 18,928 | 24.4% | 686 | $499K | 413% |
| San Miguel County | 26,850 | 18.3% | 674 | $491K | 413% |
| Cibola County | 26,845 | 23.2% | 633 | $461K | 413% |
| Lincoln County | 20,224 | 20.8% | 605 | $440K | 413% |
| Torrance County | 15,490 | 25.9% | 468 | $341K | 413% |
| Colfax County | 12,322 | 22.8% | 398 | $290K | 413% |
| Socorro County | 16,200 | 19.5% | 260 | $189K | 413% |
| Mora County | 4,149 | 25.0% | 254 | $185K | 413% |
| Quay County | 8,564 | 17.7% | 248 | $181K | 413% |
| Sierra County | 11,500 | 26.7% | 229 | $167K | 413% |
| Union County | 4,013 | 34.7% | 173 | $126K | 413% |
| Los Alamos County | 19,435 | 5.5% | 147 | $107K | 413% |
| Guadalupe County | 4,381 | 19.8% | 111 | $81K | 413% |
| Hidalgo County | 4,041 | 22.7% | 81 | $59K | 413% |
| Catron County | 3,743 | 19.2% | 65 | $47K | 413% |
| De Baca County | 1,576 | 25.9% | 26 | $19K | 413% |
| Harding County | 741 | 23.2% | 18 | $13K | 413% |
33 of 33 counties shown. Click any county for full diagnostic.