index | Albuquerque, New Mexico

As part of the creation in 1952 of what is today UNM Hospital, Bernalillo County agreed to place a Mill Levy on the ballot every eight years to support the hospital’s operational and maintenance needs. This funding is critical for UNM Hospital to retain skilled staff, expand behavioral health programs, and continue to operate and maintain high-quality health care facilities.

Here are the facts. (PDF)

Please learn more from our leaders.

UNMH Leaders
Steve McLaughlin, MD / CMO, UNM Hospital
Kate Becker, JD, MPH / CEO, UNM Hospital
Maribeth Thornton, PhD, MBA, RN / CNO, UNM Hospital
Mike Chicarelli, DNP / COO, UNM Hospital

FACTS ABOUT THE UNM HOSPITAL MILL LEVY:

(Click Here to download - PDF)
  • The ballot measure seeks voter approval to extend the Mill Levy for an additional eight years, ensuring continued funding until 2032. Thanks to voter support, the Mill Levy provided UNM Hospital with over $120 million in support in 2023, playing a vital role supporting health care delivery for Bernalillo County.
  • A Mill Levy is a tax that property owners pay to County government:
    • The tax is based on a “mill.” One mill equals $1 for every $1,000 of taxable value.
    • In New Mexico, a Mill Levy tax is imposed on one-third of a property’s assessed value.
    • Passing the UNM Hospital Mill Levy will NOT increase current taxes.
  • UNM Hospital combines this funding with their other revenue streams for its operations and maintenance.
  • The next UNM Hospital Mill Levy vote will take place on Election Day, November 5, 2024.
  • The UNM Hospital Mill Levy vote will be the LAST question on the ballot.

    • Sample Ballot Question

  • For specific questions on; your voter registration information, your voting locations, your sample ballot, your absentee application and ballot status, your county clerk’s contact information, please click HERE.
  • For more voting information, please visit the Bernalillo County Clerk page.

THE IMPORTANCE OF MILL LEVY FUNDING TO UNM HOSPITAL:

  • The facility now called the UNM Hospital opened in 1954 as Bernalillo County Indian Hospital, dedicated to serving local Native Americans and Bernalillo County. In 1978, after the hospital’s name was changed to Bernalillo County Medical Center, the hospital was leased to the Regents of the University of New Mexico, and in 1979, the hospital took its current name.
  • In 1984, UNM Hospital built an emergency/critical care addition to the original 1954 facility. The facility's most recent major upgrade, the Barbara & Bill Richardson Pavilion, opened in spring 2007. The pavilion added nearly 500,000 square feet of space, including an expanded emergency department and the UNM Children's Hospital. A new Critical Care Tower is currently under construction, expected to open in 2025 and provide additional capacity for emergencies, traumas, and critical care.
  • The Mill Levy represents about 10% of UNM Hospital's overall budget. UNM Hospital combines Mill Levy funding with other revenue sources for its operations and maintenance.
    • Mill Levy funds support areas like housekeeping, dietary services, facilities, security, parking services, and Information Technology (IT), among others.
    • UNM Hospital operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, across multiple facilities ranging in age from 1 to 70 years. There are numerous operational and maintenance demands to ensure all elements of UNM Hospital facilities are operating as effectively and efficiently as possible. This funding is important to ensure we can meet those demands.
    • Specific examples supported by Mill Levy funding include: providing food services to our patients; purchasing and maintaining critical supplies; cleaning all areas of our extremely busy hospital; keeping our patient records and other software applications secure and up-to-date; maintaining cybersecurity; maintaining a robust HVAC system; and transporting patients and families from the parking garage to the hospital, among so many others.
    • Being New Mexico’s safety net hospital, the only Level 1 trauma center, and the only Academic Health Center in the state, Mill Levy support allows our team to deliver better patient care and health outcomes, in an environment that helps educate and mold the future health care workforce and provide research and innovation to save lives and create healthier communities.
    • Overall, this funding helps create a safe, clean and friendly environment for everyone who enters our doors, and critically impacts the care that we are able to provide to the entire state of New Mexico.

PLEASE GET OUT AND VOTE THIS ELECTION SEASON.

Important Voting Dates

September 21, 2024

  • Electronic Transmission System (ETS) ballots are sent out to Federal Qualified Elector (FQE) voters.

October 8, 2024

  • Clerks begin mailing absentee ballots to voters who have requested them.
  • Books close for online and paper voter registration.
  • Early voting and Same Day Registration (SDR) at the Clerk’s Annex begins, Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

October 19 – November 2, 2024

  • Early Voting and SDR expand from Monday to Saturday. Most locations open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

October 22, 2024

  • Deadline for absentee applications to be received. Applications received after October 22 will be rejected, even if it is postmarked on October 22.

November 5, 2024

  • Election Day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Absentee ballots are due in the clerk’s office no later than 7 p.m.