Lea County Voters Decide Whether to Tax Shoppers for Gun Fights
Voters in unincorporated Lea County, New Mexico, decide Tuesday whether to add one cent in tax for every $100 in taxable sales. The money would fund lawsuits against gun control laws passed by the state legislature in Santa Fe. The Lea County Board of County Commissioners placed the measure on the ballot in August after a unanimous vote. State Rep. Randall Pettigrew, who represents the county, petitioned for it. Supporters estimate the tax would raise about $900,000 a year. Opponents call it what it is: a tax increase. If voters approve it, Lea County becomes the first jurisdiction in the country to fund gun-rights litigation through a dedicated tax, according to the reporting this summary draws from.
Key Details
The proposal targets gross receipts in unincorporated areas of the county only. Businesses there would owe the extra penny per $100 in taxable sales. Most of that cost will likely land on shoppers, since merchants typically pass taxes through at the register.
- Rate: one cent per $100 in taxable sales
- Scope: unincorporated Lea County, New Mexico
- Ballot date: Tuesday, November 3, 2026
- Estimated revenue: about $900,000 per year
- Sponsor: State Rep. Randall Pettigrew
- Commission vote: unanimous, August 2026
Pettigrew framed the measure as a choice for residents rather than a tax imposed by the commission. He told commissioners during the August meeting that he struggled with the idea until he decided voters should get to pick whether they want to pay more to defend their rights. He also called several recent state bills bad law that infringes on law-abiding citizens. He named Senate Bill 5, which restricts where people may carry guns near polling places, and House Bill 149, which imposes a seven-day waiting period on firearm purchases in New Mexico.
Online debate has been heated. One resident said the county owes taxpayers answers. Another urged neighbors to vote no and warned that the ballot contains a tax increase.
Background
New Mexico's gun laws have tightened in recent sessions, and the two bills Pettigrew cites sit at the center of the local fight. Lea County is a large, mostly rural oil and ranching county in the southeast corner of the state. Its residents have long supported firearm ownership, which makes the county a logical place to test a dedicated legal fund.
The legal framework for these challenges comes from the Supreme Court's 2022 decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen. That ruling replaced the old interest-balancing tests with a standard built on the text, history, and tradition of the Second Amendment. Under Bruen, the government must justify a firearm restriction by pointing to historical analogues. Challengers who can fund expert historians and years of appellate briefing gain a real advantage. Many gun control laws survive because the state can afford to defend them, and many gun-rights challenges die because plaintiffs cannot keep pace.
Gun control advocates already have institutional support. The source material points to public and nonprofit programs, including the University of Minnesota Law School's Gun Violence Prevention Clinic, that provide legal work for jurisdictions defending restrictive laws. Lea County's proposal would give gun-rights advocates a comparable, recurring revenue stream.
Why It Matters for Gun Owners
If you live in unincorporated Lea County, this vote hits your wallet directly. A penny per $100 looks small on a single receipt. Spread across a year of local sales, it adds up to the roughly $900,000 supporters project. Every purchase you make in those areas, from ammunition to groceries, carries the surcharge if the measure passes.
Gun owners outside Lea County should watch the result closely. A successful measure gives other counties a template. Rural New Mexico counties and similar jurisdictions in Arkansas, Colorado, and Massachusetts, where statewide gun-related referendums also appear on Tuesday's ballot, will study how voters respond to a tax earmarked for constitutional litigation. A tax that passes in one county can travel to neighboring counties quickly.
Pay attention to the ballot language and the county's spending plan after the vote. The fund's structure will determine whether it survives legal review and whether it stays focused on challenges to statewide laws.
DownRange Analysis
This is a smart idea with a real legal problem. Gun rights lose more cases on money than on merit, and Lea County is trying to fix that imbalance with local dollars. We support any effort that puts resources behind a Second Amendment challenge. Under Bruen, a well-funded plaintiff with credible historical evidence can win, and a steady revenue stream makes that outcome more likely.
The risk is that the money gets challenged before it gets spent. Attorney John Day, a KOAT legal expert, warned that the fund could violate New Mexico's anti-donation clause, which bars public money from benefiting private individuals. Day argued that the answer depends on the purpose. Spending to defend a public interest, such as a broad constitutional right that applies to all residents, stands on firmer ground than paying private litigants. Lea County should draft its spending rules with that line in mind.
If you vote in Lea County, read the ballot language, decide whether you accept a small tax for a dedicated legal fund, and vote. If you don't live there, support the organizations already litigating against SB 5 and HB 149. Tuesday's result will show whether gun owners will pay directly for their own legal defense. We will be watching.
