Full Headline: Kamala Harris’ 2024 campaign promises: Here are her plans
for the presidency
Presidential campaigns usually plan their policy agendas months, or years,
in advance. But since she became the Democratic presidential nominee this
summer, Vice President Kamala Harris has been playing catch-up.
Harris’ policy proposals overlap with many that President Joe Biden has
pursued, particularly on abortion, guns, voting rights, health care and labor
unions. But she’s made her own promises on housing, price gouging and the
Supreme Court — and is rolling out more.
Since PolitiFact’s founding in 2007, a coverage cornerstone has been
tracking the progress, or lack thereof, of sitting presidents’ campaign
promises. We tracked 533 promises made by former President Barack
Obama during his 2008 and 2012 campaigns, broken down into one of three
final ratings: Promise Kept, Promise Broken, and Compromise.
When former President Donald Trump won in 2016, we tracked 102 of his
promises. And we are now tracking the progress on 99 promises made by
Biden during his 2020 campaign.
In a separate article, we have assembled more than 100 policy proposals
Trump has made since announcing his reelection bid in late 2022. Now
we’re doing the same for more than 30 proposals made by Harris.
Most of the promises below appear on her campaign website; we have also
scoured her speeches and social media posts to collect her policy pledges.
Suggest a promise we might have missed by emailing
truthometer@politifact.com.
Abortion
Eliminate the filibuster to restore the Roe v. Wade precedent on abortion
Abortion rights is a signature issue for Harris, and this promise is similar to
an unfulfilled Biden pledge. On Sept. 24, Harris told Wisconsin Public Radio
that "we should eliminate the filibuster for Roe," referring to the 60-vote
threshold needed to proceed to most votes in the Senate. By eliminating the
filibuster, Senate Democrats would have a better chance to gather enough
votes to mandate abortion access up to fetal viability (around 24 weeks of
pregnancy) across the country.
Economy
Ban corporate price gouging on food and groceries
The four-decade-high inflation in 2022 has come down to roughly normal
levels but remains an election-year concern for many voters. Economists are
skeptical that price gouging is a major culprit in price increases.
Taxes
Will not raise taxes for those earning less than $400,000 a year
This promise extends another Biden pledge.
Roll back Trump’s tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans
Enact a minimum tax for billionaires
Increase the tax rate on long-term capital gains to 28% for those earning at
least $1 million a year
The flip side of Harris’ pledge to protect Americans earning under $400,000
a year is to increase them on wealthier households. This would include
repealing certain tax cuts affecting high earners that Trump signed initially
in 2017, and enacting a minimum tax for billionaires, and raising capital gains
rates for millionaires. Under Harris’ plan, for instance, the top marginal tax
rate for the highest income brackets would rise to 39.6%.
This plan would include other lower-profile changes geared towards higher
earners. The Tax Foundation, a center-right think tank, projects that the tax
changes for individuals would generate about $1.2 trillion in new revenue for
the federal treasury, and the changes for corporations would generate
almost $2.2 trillion. However, the group said these increases would reduce
gross domestic product by 2%, wages by 1.2% and the number of jobs by
nearly 800,000.
Expand the child tax credit to $6,000 for families with newborns
This builds on a Stalled Biden promise. Biden and Harris have touted
reductions in poverty from expanding the child tax credit, from $2,000 per
child, up to age 16, to $3,600 per child younger than 6, and $3,000 per
child ages 6 to 17, during the COVID-19 pandemic. But that expansion
lapsed when the two parties failed to agree on an extension. The Tax
Foundation estimated increasing the child tax credit to $6,000 could cost
$1.6 trillion over 10 years.
Quadruple the tax on stock buybacks
When a company buys some of its outstanding stock shares it reduces the
number of shares available for other investors to buy. This typically
increases the value of the remaining shares. Harris would raise the tax rate
on this maneuver. The Tax Foundation said this would raise $79 billion over
10 years.
Immigration
Sign the bipartisan border security bill
Harris’ major promise on immigration is to resurrect a bipartisan Senate deal
that languished after Trump urged congressional allies to block it. That
measure would have given the executive branch emergency authority to bar
most migrants from seeking asylum if unauthorized immigration at the
border reached an average of 5,000 encounters a day over seven
consecutive days. The bill would have raised the standard to pass initial
asylum screenings, expedited the asylum process, and funded the hiring of
thousands of new asylum officers and additional detention space.
Housing
Provide first-time homebuyers with up to $25,000 for down payments, plus
more generous support for first-generation homeowners
Build 3 million more rental units and affordable homes
Outlaw new forms of price fixing by corporate landlords
These policies are aimed at easing the anxiety of younger and first-time
homebuyers who have been battered by rising home prices and high
interest rates that were intended to curb inflation. The $25,000 payments
could cost the government more than $220 billion over 10 years, the Tax
Foundation projected.
Guns
Ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines
Require universal background checks for gun sales
Biden also made these promises. The one on assault weapons and high-
capacity magazines is rated Stalled, but Biden earned a Compromise on
background checks due to a limited expansion of checks under the
Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which Biden signed in 2022. The Biden
administration published a rule in 2024 that tightened the definition of
which firearm sellers must run background checks on buyers. Harris would
go further to include all sales, even those that wouldn’t qualify under the
2024 rule.
Voting
Sign the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the Freedom to Vote Act
These pledges overlap with a Biden promise that failed to advance in the
Senate because of Republican opposition. The former legislation is named
for John Lewis, the Democratic Georgia representative, civil rights leader
and voting-rights champion who died in 2020. It would prevent states from
passing voting laws that discriminate against minority voters. The Freedom
to Vote Act is broader, setting standards for early voting, mail voting and
voter registration and seeking to curb gerrymandering and certain
campaign-finance practices.
Civil rights
Pass the Equality Act to protect LGBTQ+ Americans from discrimination
The law would amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act to prohibit discrimination
based on gender identity and sexual orientation. The law currently protects
against discrimination on based on race, color, religion, sex and national
origin. The proposal applies to employment, education, housing, credit, jury
service and programs that receive federal funding and public
accommodations such as retail stores. Biden’s promise to pass the same
law is Stalled.
Health care
Extend the $35 cap on insulin and $2,000 cap on out-of-pocket spending to
all Americans
Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act in 2022 capped insulin prices at $35 and
out-of-pocket spending at $2,000 for Americans on Medicare. But the
administration’s hope of setting these limits for all Americans did not make
it into the final version of the bill.
Make tax credit enhancements for health care premiums permanent
The Inflation Reduction Act extended premium tax credits that make buying
health insurance on the Affordable Care Act’s marketplaces more
affordable. They are set to expire after 2025.
Launch a National Health Equity Initiative to address health challenges that
disproportionately impact Black men.
Harris specifically cited sickle cell disease, diabetes, mental health and
prostate cancer as health conditions of interest. As part of this promise,
Harris said she would expand the National Institute of Minority Health and
Health Disparities’ budget.
Take on pharmacy benefit managers
Pharmacy benefit managers, a type of intervener between pharmaceutical
companies and patients, have become a bipartisan target. This dovetails
with both Biden’s and Harris’ efforts to reduce drug costs by allowing
Medicare to negotiate with drugmakers over price. Harris has provided little
detail about how she would approach this issue.
Have Medicare cover in-home health care
Harris has not provided details on the scope of this program, or what it
would cost. But it would almost certainly be expensive. KFF, a health care
research group, found that full-time care ranges from $62,400 to $68,640.
Legal issues
Ensure that no former president has immunity for crimes committed while in
office
A landmark 2024 Supreme Court ruling gave presidents broad immunity for
official acts in office, raising questions for the outcome of several criminal
cases against Trump. It’s unclear how Harris would pursue this promise.
Require Supreme Court justices to comply with ethics rules
Impose term limits on Supreme Court justices
U.S. Supreme Court justices do not have fixed terms and are not bound by
ethics rules that other U.S. judges must follow. Changing this would require
legislation, though it’s unclear whether such a law would survive judicial
scrutiny, including by the Supreme Court itself.
Labor
Raise the minimum wage
The minimum wage hasn’t been raised since 2009. Biden promised to do it,
but it has Stalled because Republicans and some Democrats opposed it.
Eliminate taxes on tips
Trump proposed this first, and Harris has followed suit. Both candidates
were believed to be eyeing voters in Nevada, where many work in the
hospitality industry and receive tips for compensation. The Tax Foundation
estimates that this would cost the government $118 billion in revenue over
10 years.
Establish paid family and medical leave
The U.S. is the world's only industrialized country without a national paid
family and medical leave policy that guarantees workers compensation
when they take time off to have children. Biden’s effort to change this is
Stalled.
End sub-minimum wages for tipped workers and people with disabilities
Under federal law, employers may pay tipped workers less than the minimum
wage under the assumption that these workers will make up the difference
through tips. Another category of worker, people with disabilities, may also
be paid less than the minimum wage. Harris would eliminate both of these
categories and require that both types of workers be paid the minimum
wage instead.
Double the number of apprenticeships
There are an estimated 600,000 apprentices in the United States. Some
labor economists have urged the United States to follow the lead of
European countries in relying more heavily on an apprenticeship model as a
less-expensive alternative to higher education.
End four-year college degree requirements for federal jobs where
appropriate
This is policy has bipartisan appeal; Trump issued an executive order going
in this direction in 2020, and governors from both parties have pursued
similar policies in their states.
Limit businesses from "unnecessarily" using criminal arrest histories,
convictions, and credit scores in employment decisions
Harris wasn’t specific about how she would seek to limit the use of criminal
histories and credit scores in hiring by employers, but she approvingly cited
laws already passed by 37 states led by both Republican and Democratic
governors and 150 cities.
These laws are sometimes called "ban the box" laws, a reference to the
check-box often included on job applications that ask whether applicants
have been arrested or convicted of a felony. The state and local laws
typically require that employers consider a job candidate’s qualifications
before inquiring about past convictions. Supporters say this forces
employers to consider applicants individually on their merits rather than
ruling out classes of candidates across the board. Most of these state laws
address government hiring or contracting, but 15 states have also "banned
the box" for private-sector hiring.
Sign the pro-labor PRO Act and the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act
Democrats have historically sided with labor unions, while Republicans have
sided with management. The Protecting the Right to Organize, or PRO, Act
would have helped labor unions in several ways, including by expanding the
definition of who can be covered by federal labor standards, undercutting
"right to work" laws in many states, and banning the use of striker
replacements. Biden has so far failed to pass the PRO Act. The Public
Service Freedom to Negotiate Act is focused on public-employee unions,
setting minimum collective bargaining rights.
Small businesses
Generate 25 million new business applications
Expand the startup expense tax deduction for new businesses from $5,000
to $50,000
Increase the share of federal contract dollars going to small businesses
Harris’ agenda to bolster small businesses, a constituency that historically
leans Republican, would cost about $24 billion in tax revenue over 10 years,
according to the Tax Foundation.
Provide 1 million loans to Black entrepreneurs, fully forgivable up to $20,000
This promise is part of Harris’ "Opportunity Agenda for Black Men."
Although Harris had already proposed subsidies for business startups more
generally, she said Black entrepreneurs are often likelier to be denied credit
than their white counterparts, even when they have equivalent credit
scores.
Foreign policy
Secure hostage and cease-fire deals between Israel and Hamas
Biden has worked, so far fruitlessly, on an agreement to bring Israeli
hostages home and end the Israel-Hamas war. Harris promises to reach an
agreement.
Crime
Double the Justice Department’s resources to go after transnational cartels
and fentanyl
Harris made this promise after Trump accused her of wanting to legalize
fentanyl "right away." That’s False. But fentanyl has been a serious problem,
killing about 100,000 Americans a year. Fentanyl seizures have more than
doubled under the Biden-Harris administration, federal data shows, though
it’s unclear whether that means the federal government is getting a better
handle on the problem or not.
Marijuana
Legalize recreational marijuana
Twenty-four states allow recreational use of marijuana, with four more
weighing the issue on ballot measures this year. Harris said she would
legalize recreational marijuana nationally.
Financial regulation
Enact a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency
The federal government does not have a regulatory framework for
cryptocurrency, though some states do. Harris has not detailed how this
would look.
Technology
Extend the expired Affordable Connectivity Program to support internet
access
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Biden signed in 2022 included the
Affordable Connectivity Program, a provision the administration said
provided 23 million households — primarily rural and low-income
households — with up to $30 off of their monthly internet bills along with a
one-time discount of up to $100 to buy a laptop, desktop computer or tablet
computer. Funding lapsed in June; Harris said she would push to revive the
program.
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