NEW MEXICO (KRQE) — A recently published study by WalletHub has ranked New Mexico as the worst state for a taxpayer's return on investment. This was determined by analyzing the quality of government services received by the residents paying local and state taxes. How to avoid identity the ft during tax season Metrics used to rank the quality of government services include education, health, safety, economy, and infrastructure, as well as pollution. These metrics were further broken down into the following categories: School systems Roads and bridges Hospital systems Violent crime rate Water quality Percentage of residents in poverty New Mexico ranked in the bottom five of all these categories, with the exception of roads and bridges. For school systems, New Mexico came in at No. 50, and for hospital systems, No. 45. In terms of violent crime rate, New Mexico is in a four-way tie with Arkansas, Tennessee, and Alaska. Then, for water quality, the Land of Enchantment tied with Louisiana and Oklahoma. As for the number of residents in poverty, the state ranks at No. 48. The study took a look at all fifty states, with the top five being New Hampshire, Florida, South Dakota, Missouri, and Ohio. The bottom five included North Dakota, California, Alaska, Hawaii, and then New Mexico at No. 50. Source: WalletHub The extended methodology of this study can be found on the WalletHub website. Top 10 States New Hampshire Florida South Dakota Missouri Ohio Wisconsin Nebraska Rhode Island Iowa Virginia ...read more read less