Honor Native Land Tax Calculator

Are you wondering how much money you should contribute to the Land Tax?

Honor Native Land Tax (based in Albuquerque, NM) created this calculator to help you think about your relationship to money and the land you’re on, because we know everyone has a different relationship to wealth and finances. 

One of the goals of this project is to redistribute wealth from settlers to Indigenous people. As part of this process, it is important that we as settlers reckon with our entitlement to and possession of wealth. Our class conditioning strongly shapes our values, beliefs, and expectations. This calculator is a tool to help bring some clarity about a meaningful monthly contribution. We encourage you to think about your individual, personal relationship to the land and to settler colonialism as you consider your contribution.

The calculator is designed for individuals; if you share finances in your household, we recommend that each adult fill out the calculator and add the suggested amounts together as a starting point.

This calculator is not perfect or “the truth” about what your contribution should be—you know your circumstances best. If they are not reflected in the options that we have laid out, pick those that are closest to your experience. If your situation is in flux, do your best and know you can always increase or decrease your donation amount as needed.

CALCULATE YOUR LAND TAX

Consider all sources of income including, but not limited to: jobs, gigs, rental income, dividends, commissions, money you currently get from family members etc.

Consider your current living situation, including whether you rent or own.

Consider all student, medical, and consumer debt that you currently have. Do not include mortgage debt, this is accounted for in the housing category.

Consider wealth that you currently have access to because of family or other relationships, as well as what you might inherit or owe when family members pass away. Wealth you have access to or may inherit includes: money, gifts, stocks, land and property, trusts, cars, etc. Negative family wealth means you don’t inherit anything of value and have responsibility to pay expenses that come up when a family member dies, like funeral, casket, legal fees, clergy, etc.

Consider your current status. We acknowledge that not all advanced degrees are created equally—some have higher earning potential and social capital than others. We’ve tried to account for this and we also encourage you to think about your degree(s) in terms of social hierarchy (e.g. MDs and JDs often have higher earning potential than MFAs).

Consider the people who rely on you for financial support, including children, elders, or others.

Consider the money that is in your savings account, retirement funds (401k, IRA, SEP, etc), investments in stocks, bonds, and mutual funds.