Vice President Kamala Harris has unveiled a series of new economic plans aimed at addressing issues such as food prices, taxes, housing, and medical costs, with a focus on supporting the middle class. These proposals mark Harris’ first significant policy announcements since President Joe Biden backed her as his successor.

Harris is looking to tackle concerns about inflation by proposing federal limits on price increases for food producers and grocers within her first 100 days in office. She also seeks to empower the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general to enforce stricter penalties on offenders and regulate mergers and acquisitions in the food industry to combat rising prices.

In terms of housing, Harris is advocating for the construction of 3 million new housing units over four years to alleviate the housing shortage in the US. She plans to introduce tax incentives for builders creating starter homes for first-time buyers and establish a $40 billion innovation fund to support the construction of affordable rental housing units. Harris also aims to streamline permitting processes to expedite getting housing to the market and reduce rental costs by restricting bulk home investments.

Additionally, Harris intends to continue efforts to lower prescription drug costs by allowing Medicare and other federal programs to negotiate prices with drug manufacturers to decrease drug expenses significantly by 2026. She also plans to address medical debt by collaborating with state entities to erase $7 billion in medical debt for millions of eligible Americans.

Furthermore, Harris proposes making the $3,600 per child tax credit permanent and introducing a new $6,000 tax credit for families with newborn children. She also aims to expand the Earned Income Tax Credit to reduce taxes for frontline workers and lower taxes on healthcare plans under the Affordable Care Act.