5 Ways That a Kamala Harris Presidency Could Impact the Middle Class
Written by
Vance Cariaga
Edited by
Daria Uhlig
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During her time as vice president, Kamala Harris has been a staunch supporter of economic policies trotted out by President Joe Biden. These include successes such as the Inflation Reduction Act as well as failures like widespread federal student loan forgiveness, which was shot down by the U.S. Supreme Court. Should Harris become president, you can expect her to pursue similar policies that could affect middle-class Americans in different ways.
According to an analysis by The New York Times, Harris was more progressive than Biden in certain areas when she served as California’s attorney general and then U.S. senator. Among other things, she advocated raising taxes on businesses to help pay for universal healthcare and also proposed more generous tax benefits for working- and middle-class Americans.
Here are ways a Harris presidency could impact the middle class.
Tax Credits
As a presidential candidate leading up to the 2020 election, Harris proposed replacing the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act signed by ex-President Donald Trump with a monthly refundable tax credit worth up to $500 for people earning less than $100,000 a year, the NYT reported. The policy, known as the LIFT the Middle Class Act, aimed to help offset high living costs by providing middle-class and working families with money to help pay for everyday expenses.
Harris has also proposed multiple changes to the tax code, including raising taxes on high-income earners and providing refundable tax credits. You can expect Harris to pursue similar legislation if she wins the White House in November.
Student Loan Relief
Another one of Harris’ proposals as a presidential candidate was a student-debt forgiveness plan that was part of a broader initiative to invest in Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Black entrepreneurs, Fox Business reported. Under that plan, Pell Grant recipients would have up to $20,000 of their student loans forgiven if they started a business in a disadvantaged community and operated it for at least three years.
As VP, Harris also endorsed Biden’s proposal to cancel up to $10,000 of federal student loans per borrower.
Healthcare Expansion
While Republican lawmakers have floated proposals to roll back parts of the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare), Harris is a long-time advocate of universal healthcare coverage similar to that provided by the ACA. If she becomes president, you can expect her to protect Obamacare and expand services provided by Medicare.
Consumer Prices
Trump has made no secret of his desire to protect U.S. manufacturing by imposing stiff tariffs on cheap imported goods, especially those made in China. Economists fear that such a policy would lead to continued high prices on consumer goods. In contrast, Harris has said she is “not a protectionist Democrat,” which means she would probably avoid stiff tariffs as president.
In terms of inflation, Harris would likely maintain the Biden policy of using Federal Reserve rate hikes to bring prices down. While that policy has succeeded in cutting inflation by roughly two-thirds from its 2022 peak, prices for many essentials continue to strain middle-class budgets.
Expanded Child Tax Credit
Harris supported the expansion of the Child Tax Credit (CTC), which provided up to $3,600 per child under the age of six and $3,000 for children ages six to 17. As president, she likely would continue to pursue these kinds of policies, which are designed to help poor Americans but also provide a big financial boost to middle-class families.
Editor’s note on election coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. For more coverage on this topic, please check out What a Trump Presidency Could Mean for the Middle Class.
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