Pennsylvania families are struggling to make ends meet as the cost of living continues to rise. In fact, Philadelphia saw one of the largest increases in the cost of living in the country, ranking 11th nationwide with a 6.26% increase from 2024 to 2025. But to make things worse, in order to live “comfortably” in Pennsylvania, a family of four must earn at least $247,936 this year.
This number should shock many, as the median income in Pennsylvania is around $77,000, a third of what is necessary to live “comfortably.”
This leads to an important question for lawmakers: What can Pennsylvania do to help families afford the lives they are working hard to build?
One possible solution, proposed by Rep. Thomas Kutz’s Growth and Affordability Plan (GAP), aims to make life more affordable by considering all the costs facing Pennsylvania families and businesses, not just treating each expense separately.
At its core, GAP aims to give families more breathing room in their budgets.
This includes plans to lower Pennsylvania’s Personal Income Tax and remove the Gross Receipts Tax on electricity, along with proposals to make child care more affordable and help families save for big expenses.
Housing affordability is one of the most complex issues GAP tries to solve. That’s because home prices are shaped by factors like the availability of homes, rental costs, and interest rates. The last one is largely out of Harrisburg’s hands, since the national interest rate is set by the Federal Reserve. But GAP does tackle the availability side, working to increase housing supply and cut the regulations that make building more expensive.
We can look to Indiana as an example. Indiana was ranked the No. 1 state in the country in Realtor.com’s 2026 report measuring housing affordability and homebuilding.
Indiana got there by adopting reforms like the “Housing Matters” House Bill 1001, which makes housing development easier and more predictable. It limits certain local permitting fees, protects projects from changing requirements mid-application, and requires local governments to review their development rules with an eye toward building more housing. By reducing barriers to building, Indiana expanded housing supply and created more opportunities for families to afford a home.
The GAP plan also understands that affordability issues in Pennsylvania are bigger than just family budgets.
Small businesses and larger employers face their own costs, taxes, and regulatory pressures. Creating a place where businesses can invest, grow, and hire helps build an economy where families have opportunities to earn and succeed.
Energy is another piece of the puzzle. Lowering costs matters, but maintaining a reliable electricity supply as Pennsylvania’s economy and population change is also important. The House Republican Policy hearing brought these issues together, highlighting the connection among affordability, energy supply, and reliability.
No single policy can lower every cost. But affordability depends on the total of all these expenses.
It is the mortgage or rent. The electric bill. Child care. The cost of starting a business or paying off student loans. It is what is left after paying the bills.
The full GAP plan is still being developed, and the details of each idea will be important. But it is a conversation Pennsylvania needs: How can we cut unnecessary costs, support growth, and help Pennsylvanians keep more of what they earn?
Families in Pennsylvania are already feeling the pressure. The challenge now is to find real solutions to close the gap between what people earn and what it costs to live, work, and build a future here.
This is the gap Pennsylvania can close.
