Cheryl Everett: Permanent fund would strengthen future revenue Cheryl Everett For the last few years the New Mexico Legislature has undercut funding for municipalities by reducing their so-called “hold-harmless” reimbursement. Hold-harmless payments were enacted to compensate local governments for their revenue loss as state sales tax on food are being reduced in annual increments between 2015 and 2030. The sales tax cuts were intended to provide tax relief for lower-income families. Ironically, those cuts could lead to cutbacks in city programs and services for those same families and other city residents. The New Mexico Municipal League and many of its member cities expressed alarm over these “hold-harmless” cuts.