Rep. Vasquez Unveils Affordability Agenda in Albuquerque

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Earlier this month, following a roundtable with community leaders, U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez (NM-02) unveiled his Affordability Agenda, a comprehensive set of policy solutions to address the affordability crisis facing hardworking New Mexicans. This Affordability Agenda comes as the cost of housing, food, health care, and utilities continue to soar under the Trump Administration — trends only exacerbated by the Republican tax law.

“It’s getting harder and harder to make ends meet every month, and folks are increasingly facing really difficult choices, like whether to pay their utility bill or refill their child’s prescription,” said Vasquez, “My affordability agenda puts forward real policy solutions that bring down the cost of food housing, health care, and utilities for New Mexicans.”

Policy measures in Rep. Vasquez’s Affordability Agenda include:

• Lower Taxes: 
  • Offsetting rising prices and offering a fully refundable 10% tax credit to households making under $100,000 in his Tax Relief from Tariffs and High Costs Act
  • Creating tax policy that supports the middle class and workers, like his Boost the Middle Class Act to expand the Earned Income Tax Credit by 10% and index it to inflation
  • Supporting efforts like the TIPS Act to make “no tax on tips” permanent
  • Expanding access to affordable childcare and home health care by allowing caregivers to receive up to a $5,000 tax credit each year for expenses associated with their caregiving services in the Credit For Caring Act
• Food: 
  • Fixing SNAP — not cutting it — with commonsense reforms like the Hot Foods Act to allow families to buy ready-to-eat meals
  • Supporting federal funding for the Emergency Food Assistance Program, which helps farmers and families by allowing commodities to be sent directly from farmers to food banks
  • Working with state and local partners to protect access to free school lunch programs and expand food assistance programs that serve seniors and Tribal communities
  • Working to ensure that efforts to bring down costs for everyday goods also make their way to rural communities in his Combatting Rural Inflation Act
• Housing: 
  • Cracking down on predatory out-of-state investors to keep housing costs low in New Mexico with his Keep Mobile Homes Affordable Act
  • Stopping unfair rent increases by supporting the HOME Act
  • Encouraging the conversion of empty commercial real estate into housing units through the Revitalizing Downtowns and Main Streets Act
• Health Care: 
  • Defending Medicaid coverage for the 38,000 New Mexicans in the district who rely on it for the care they need
  • Urging the administration to work across the aisle to lower drug costs and leave Medicare’s ability to negotiate lower drug prices in place
  • Capping insulin prices at $35/month for individuals with private insurance
• Utilities: 
  • Protecting clean energy investments that lower long-term utility bill costs
  • Fighting for the highest possible funding for programs like LIHEAP which help vulnerable households cover their energy bills

The Affordability Agenda was delivered alongside representatives from organizations on the frontline of New Mexico’s affordability crisis, including Roadrunner Food Bank, Albuquerque Healthcare for the Homeless, Presbyterian Medical Services, Be Well NM, Rio Grande Food Bank, and more. Rep. Vasquez is working as a partner with those in the community to find practical solutions for the affordability challenges facing New Mexico. 

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