Democrats, Republicans unveil affordability agendas amid rising costs

Grocery and rent prices have climbed steadily over the past year, and Harris County – particularly Houston’s communities of color- has felt it acutely. 

In historically Black neighborhoods like the Fifth Ward and Kashmere Gardens, residents say they are increasingly turning to off-brand products just to keep their budgets intact.

The debate over why has split along familiar partisan lines. Republicans point to Biden-era inflation, worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic, as the root cause. Democrats counter that the Iran war and Republican fiscal policy are driving costs higher now.

Rep. Christian Menefee, who represents the 18th Congressional District, said a nationwide 33% rise in grocery prices is no longer sustainable for the families he represents.

“Everywhere I go, I hear the same thing: Groceries cost more, rent is higher, electric bills keep climbing, and families are stretched thinner than ever,” Menefee said. “People are working hard, but too many are still falling behind.”

Grocery prices nationwide have risen nearly 33% since 2016, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. In TX-18, Menefee said the average monthly grocery bill has climbed to nearly $1,000 and more than $21,000 for one year of child care for two children.

The Congressional Progressive Caucus estimates Americans are now paying $2,300 more annually for basic living expenses, including housing, gas, electricity, child care and health care under the current administration and Republican-controlled Congress.

In response, the caucus unveiled its New Affordability Agenda, a package of bills targeting costs across multiple fronts. 

It includes:

•  A federal generic drug manufacturing program aimed at cutting prices on insulin and other essential medications
• Legislation cracking down on price-fixing by major grocery chains
• A housing bill offering $20,000 in down-payment assistance to first-time buyers, alongside $1 trillion for affordable housing
• A utility bill targeting price gouging by for-profit utilities
• A child care bill capping costs at $10 a day for many families
• Doubled overtime pay
• A $5,000 cap on super PAC contributions.

Seniors feel the pressure

At Hester House, a gathering place for Black seniors in the heart of the Fifth Ward, community members described the daily math of stretching a fixed income further than it can go.

Joetta Stevenson, a longtime Fifth Ward resident, said seniors living on fixed incomes are struggling most to keep themselves fed.

“Whatever that income is, your budget is where it is based upon that,” Stevenson said. “Even if you’re on Social Security, it might increase a minuscule amount each year, but the price of food, the price of keeping your lights on, utilities, that has not risen minusculely.”

Stevenson added that her grocery basket looks different than how it used to.

“Now I hold back because my basket doesn’t look the same,” she said. “For the same amount of money it did, say, two years ago … it just doesn’t look the same.”

She used to buy seafood as a treat, but now asks the butcher to hold some back so she can afford what’s left. Olive oil, once a staple, is off her list entirely. She’s focused instead on basics, like bread, butter, eggs, and rice.

“My money is not stretching at any grocery store, none,” she said. “When you’re dealing with basic things like toilet tissue and stuff like that, it’s just astronomical.”

In Texas, nearly 400,000 people have lost SNAP benefits since the “One Big Beautiful Bill” passed.

CPC Chair Rep. Greg Casar said the agenda is meant to unify the party around a concrete economic message.

“Affordability is not a ‘hoax,’ and it also has to be more than just a slogan,” Casar said. “The New Affordability Agenda shows how Democrats can actually make things cheaper for working people by taking on special interests who are ripping people off. These are the kind of bold, populist ideas Democrats should talk about in 2026 and pass in 2027.

On the Republican side, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee for a U.S. Senate seat, unveiled an economic plan centered on tax breaks ahead of the U.S. Senate race in November.

Paxton’s plan includes $25,000 for all out-of-pocket medical expenses, including health insurance premiums, and another $5,000 “healthy living” tax deduction that covers gym memberships and GLP-1 drugs for weight loss (medically approved).

“Obviously, medical expenses have gone up, and they’ve gotten out of control, and so we need to help Texans with those,” Paxton said.

Additionally, he pledged a $50,000 tax deduction for first-time homebuyers and second-time homebuyers for a primary residence, and supported President Donald Trump’s tax-deferred investment accounts for children under age 18. Paxton also advocated for doubling the child tax credit to $4,400 per child, up from $2,200 now.