Republican U.S. Senate candidate Ken Paxton unveiled a new economic agenda on Friday, his first detailed policy proposal of the high-stakes campaign.
The main pillars of the plan all involve granting new tax breaks for healthcare expenses, housing down payments and family benefits as affordability dominates voters’ concerns, and as some polls show Paxton lagging behind his Democratic opponent James Talarico.
“Washington has made it harder than ever to get ahead, and the American Dream is slipping away as the cost of everything from housing to healthcare rises,” Paxton said in a release. “My agenda is very simple: I believe every Texan should be able to buy a home, raise a family, and live a healthy life without struggling to make ends meet.”
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Paxton is proposing a $25,000 tax deduction for all out-of-pocket medical expenses and an additional $25,000 for all dependents. He’s also proposed a $5,000 tax deduction for “healthy lifestyle” expenses, including gym-related costs, nutrition plans and GLP-1 medication.
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For families, he’s proposed making Trump savings accounts permanent. The accounts were created by President Donald Trump’s tax and spending bill last year and allow family members and employers to deposit money that can’t be withdrawn until the child turns 18. Those born between Jan. 1, 2025, and Dec. 31, 2028 are eligible to receive $1,000 from the federal government for the accounts.
He also proposed doubling the Child Tax Credit, which would increase the maximum credit to $4,400 per child, and on housing suggested a $50,000 tax deduction for first-time homebuyers and a deduction of the same amount for those who move to a new primary residence.
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Paxton’s plan didn’t offer up any ideas for how to pay for the tax breaks or what they would cost the federal government to implement
Some of Paxton’s ideas have been debated by both parties. Senate Democrats proposed increasing the Child Tax Credit last year, and Paxton’s Democratic challenger, James Talarico, has likewise proposed an increase.
The high-profile race is one of the most watched in the country and could determine which party controls the U.S. Senate.
Talarico has vastly outraised Paxton and has already poured nearly $40 million into advertising, allowing him to dominate the airwaves and introduce himself to voters. Paxton announced an ad to go along with the unveiling of the plan in which he touts his proposed tax benefits. He will also embark on a 4-city tour to promote his economic plan, and is currently scheduled to stop in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and McAllen.
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Talarico’s campaign said “the idea that Ken Paxton, a multimillionaire who owns 15 properties, has suddenly decided to care about Texans’ pocketbooks on his 479th day of running for U.S. Senate is laughable.”
Talarico’s platform includes other measures that target affordability like increasing taxes on billionaires and corporations, hiking the minimum wage, creating federal public health insurance and going after corporate landlords that inflate rent prices.
