DENVER — Kamala Harris has released little information about the specific policies she’d enact as president. One of the few topics she has talked about is her economic agenda.
In a state that keeps getting more expensive to live in, Harris has promised to make everything from groceries to housing to having children more affordable. Whether her policies will actually do that is up for debate.
"I will work to pass the first-ever federal ban on price gouging on food," Harris said in a speech on Friday. "My plan will include new penalties for opportunistic companies that exploit crises and break the rules, and we will support smaller food businesses that are trying to play by the rules and get ahead."
Harris touted her first economic policy proposal of her campaign just last week. While the plan is short on specifics, the campaign says the ban on price gouging in the grocery industry would help bring down food prices.
While several states already have price gouging laws, critics warn more attempts to cap food prices could lead to a lack of supply. It comes at a time when the future of Colorado's largest grocery stores is also in question. If the proposed merger between Kroeger and Albertsons goes through, competition for food prices could also be lessened.
"I think it’s very difficult in the current retail environment to try and implement any sort of price controls," Jack Buffington, Program Director of Supply Chain Management at the University of Denver, said. "You have to be really careful to understand that solving one problem doesn’t cause another. If there is a possibility to achieve price controls, it could impact supply which perpetuates the cycle of availability, which increases prices in the long run."
If there’s one industry people in Colorado know is expensive, it’s real estate. Harris has proposed a $25,000 credit for first-time home buyers.
"This could potentially be a game changer for a buyer that has essentially been sidelined for the last year or so," said 9NEWS Real Estate Expert Lane Lyon, who's also a managing broker at Coldwell Banker.
Lyon said more money in buyers’ pockets is always good, but it could also raise home prices everywhere if people have more cash to spend. The plan would also focus on building more affordable housing.
"It’s just a matter of how it’s going to be delivered," Lyon said. "Is it going to be a credit? Is it going to be an incentive? Cash flow at the beginning? Those are questions that we still don’t know, and it will make a difference about what those transactions look like."
As with most things in politics, whether a plan is good or bad depends on who you ask. Jake Fogleman with the nonpartisan, free market think tank Independence Institute said Harris’ plans would increase prices at the grocery store and in the housing market.
"Frankly speaking, there’s some political appeal to what she said, but I think it’s economically illiterate," Fogleman said. "It’s Economics 101. Price controls result in shortages, and I don’t think consumers are going to be happier by not having the products that they want than paying a little more for them."
Andrea Kuwik with the liberal Bell Policy Center argued Harris’ policies would make Colorado more affordable for everyone, especially those who need the most help.
"I do think that Colorado would be a better place if her policies were enacted," Kuwik said. "Anything that can really tamp down those prices can have a really big impact."
One thing both candidates agree on? Ending taxes on tips.
"We are going to not charge taxes on people making tips," Trump said in a campaign speech.
After Trump floated the idea, Harris endorsed it too.
"We will eliminate taxes on tips for service and hospitality workers," Harris said.
Vice President Harris has also proposed giving parents of newborn children a $6,000 tax credit. While the tax credits could help lift children out of poverty and give families struggling to support their kids a much-needed boost, it would likely come with a hefty price tag. Republican vice-presidential nominee JD Vance has also floated a similar $5,000 credit for parents.
This is one of the few policy areas that we’ve actually heard proposals on from the vice president. Still, there are very little specifics. While we heard her talking about economic policies in a speech last Friday, she’s not taking questions about the policies nor are they outlined anywhere on her website.