OPINION:
Voters of all ages and backgrounds nationwide are united on one key issue: Prices are too high.
Sure, the cost of a carton of eggs has gone down from a year ago, but overall costs are still too high. It’s fair to blame former President Joseph R. Biden for the policies that led to major price increases during his failed term in office, but voters still want lower prices.
Americans need a game plan. Here is my suggestion for a road map to affordability.
Reduce the tax burden: One of the things governments at all levels can do is lower the level of taxation. In particular, lower property and income taxes at all levels means people can keep more of their paychecks and retirees can stay in their homes.
When I was governor, property and income taxes were lower at the end of my two terms than when I first took office. This helped make it more affordable to live, work, play and retire in Wisconsin.
At the same time, we finished each year with a surplus. Putting more money in consumers’ hands was good for the economy and helped increase state government revenue.
Arthur Laffer has published research about the benefits of lower tax burdens, particularly to lower-income people. Cutting taxes helps the masses.
Cap electric and gas bills: The consumers of power from public utilities across the country are feeling the pain of significant increases in their electric and gas bills. Average U.S. residential electricity prices rose roughly 21% from 2021 to 2024.
At the same time, the president and his administration are pushing for cost-effective forms of energy. Consumers should be receiving the dividend from those lower costs.
In Wisconsin, utility rate increases are way up from when I was governor. We need to put a cap on these increases to protect working families and senior citizens. Cap utility increases while bringing back affordable, reliable forms of power.
Make education affordable: College tuition in America is out of control. Since 1980, tuition and fees have increased by roughly 1,200% while the consumer price index has risen by 236%. Liberals focus on making other people pay off student loan debt. Instead, we should stop the increase in tuition.
We froze tuition at all University of Wisconsin campuses when I was governor. It’s time to talk about lowering these costs.
Institutions need to reduce the size of their bloated administrations, including massive increases in areas such as diversity, equity and inclusion. Cut these programs and return to the basics while lowering tuition so students can graduate with little to no debt.
Control health care costs: The rising costs of health care are eating up more and more of our wages. From 1994 to 2024, total health insurance premiums rose nearly three times as fast as workers’ earnings. This is unacceptable to me.
One of the simplest solutions is total transparency of costs. Think about it. Why can most people reasonably afford a cellphone? Because consumers can shop around for better deals among companies. Most of us know more about our cellphone plan than we know about our health insurance plan. Let consumers know the true costs and give us the flexibility to shop around for the best plan.
Health care and education are among the areas most controlled by the government, yet they have some of the fastest-growing costs and the lowest levels of customer satisfaction. Open up the marketplace and put consumers back in charge of their health care.
Lower housing costs: So many Americans feel years away from living a major part of the American dream: having their own home.
Lower interest rates would be a major help, but a simple understanding of supply and demand shows the real answer to lowering costs is to build more homes. One of the best ways to do that is to streamline permit and approval processes across various levels of government.
In particular, governments should provide a template for businesses that build the same types of homes on a large scale. Make it easy to build high-quality, affordable homes, and they will do it.
In many areas, homebuilding focuses on expensive homes because the permit costs are so high. The builders need to see a sizable return on investment. Make it easier to build homes, particularly those with similar footprints and style, and the higher volume will provide a significant incentive for mass construction of affordable homes.
Overall, conservatives across the country need a real plan of action to attract voters worried about how much things cost in America today. This road map to affordability is a great starting point for conservatives.
• Scott Walker is a columnist for The Washington Times. He was the 45th governor of Wisconsin and launched a bid for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination. He lives in Milwaukee and is the proud owner of a 2003 Harley-Davidson Road King. He can be reached at swalker@washingtontimes.com.
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