Improving Affordability

Inflation has taken a toll on people all throughout our country, including here in the Lehigh Valley and the Poconos. From the start of 2021 to 2025, prices increased 21% on average thanks to the worst inflation in decades. While inflation has since slowed, people in our community are still digging out of the hole created by these price increases. That's why I'm working to deliver the relief that workers, seniors, and families of the Lehigh Valley and the Poconos deserve.

Read on to learn what we've done to deliver improved affordability, tax relief for every American, and an economy that works for working families.

Supporting Working Families

As a husband and a father of young children, I understand the challenges facing working families in our community. That's why working to deliver relief to families has been a day one priority for me in Congress. The first legislation that I introduced was my working families tax package, a collection of bills that would significantly reduce costs for millions of American families.

Here's what's in the plan:

Expanding access to paid family and medical leave by strengthening incentives for employers.
Reducing childcare costs by doubling the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit.
More than doubling the Child Tax Credit.
Increasing the adoption tax credit and creating a matching credit for IVF.

Learn more about the Working Families Tax Package HERE.

After introducing this legislation, I got to work on including these concepts in the 2025 budget reconciliation package. Following my advocacy, we were able to secure real wins for working families in our community, including:

A permanent increase to the Child Tax Credit from $1,000 to $2,200, with future indexing for inflation to ensure that the credit doesn't lose its value.
An expansion of the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit.
A $750 increase to the standard deduction for every taxpayer.
The creation of savings accounts for all children born from 2025-2028, with over $1,000 in starting funds from the government and private donors.

Standing up for Workers

Washington has failed American workers for decades - failing to address unfair and illegal competition, punishing hard work, and allowing wages to stagnate. Improving affordability doesn't just mean reining in inflation, it means ensuring that workers have the take-home pay that they deserve in an economy that works.

First, we're ensuring that hard work pays off for American workers, and that tips are going to their intended recipients. That's why the Working Families Tax Cuts includes tax relief for tips and overtime. When tens of millions of tipped and overtime workers go to file their taxes in 2026, they will be able to write off up to $25,000 of income from tips and overtime. This provision is retroactive, meaning that all wages from 2025 will be eligible for this deduction when you go to file your taxes in 2026.

We also know that long-term economic gains for Working Americans will require higher wages and good opportunities. Broken trade and immigration policies have meant that American workers have been forced to compete with unfair competition from foreign countries and millions of illegal workers. These forces have undercut American wages and squeezed domestic manufacturers, meaning that there are fewer opportunities and less pay. That's why we've worked to secure our border once and for all and crack down on illegal trading practices from countries like China.

Delivering Relief for Seniors

Seniors have spent their lives paying taxes and supporting our communities. Now, after experiencing the worst inflation in decades, seniors deserve real relief that puts money back in their pockets. That's why I helped to pass a new, $6,000 bonus tax deduction for seniors. This deduction is available to seniors 65 and over, and is projected to eliminate all federal taxes on social security for 88% of Americans.

Many seniors will also benefit from other new tax provisions, like a $750 increase to the standard deduction and an increased State and Local Tax Deduction. Learn more about the new tax relief available to seniors HERE.

Unleashing American Energy

Misguided policies have allowed American energy to fall behind. From 2021-2024, gas prices reached their highest levels on record while energy prices increased over 40%. In a country with plentiful energy, and in a state with massive resources under our feet, there's no reason why the American people should have to see price increases on this scale.

That's why I'm working to unleash American energy with an all-of-the-above strategy. In Congress, I've worked to eliminate unnecessary red tape and scrap the failed, one-size-fits-all energy policies that caused the problem. I'll keep working to unleash the full potential of American energy and deliver the relief that Americans deserve.

Reducing Housing Costs

Housing prices have skyrocketed throughout our country in recent years, including here in the Lehigh Valley and the Poconos. In Allentown, rent prices rose 45% from 2019-2024 while prices in Bethlehem rose 40%. These kinds of increases are unsustainable for local residents, which is why I'm working to increase the supply of high-quality affordable housing.

This year, I helped to pass an expansion of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC). This is the federal government's main tool for increasing the supply of affordable housing, and our reforms are predicted to help build over one million new affordable housing units in the coming years. Alongside a reduction in interest rates and the elimination of unnecessary red tape, we're working to build abundant affordable housing for the American people.

Working for Bipartisan Healthcare Reform

Healthcare becomes more expensive every year, and for Americans who purchase their own insurance, these costs create a severe burden. At the same time, our healthcare system increasingly features less choice and more bureaucracy. That's why I'm working with members of both parties to pass commonsense, bipartisan healthcare reform.

These bipartisan reforms aim to reduce prices, increase transparency, crack down on corporate insurance fraud, and cut out the middlemen. Here are some the bipartisan proposals that I'm working to deliver:

Passage of the bipartisan Insurance Fraud Accountability Act, which cracks down on fraudulent insurance brokers who take advantage of taxpayer-funded subsidies.
Achieving pharmacy benefit manager reform and ensuring that rebates reach their intended recipients.
An expansion of healthcare savings accounts, giving consumers more choice and flexibility.
Introducing hospital billing transparency.