Beaver County News

Rep. Andrew Kuzma of the 39th Legislative District hosted a hearing to address the impact of inflation on local communities, small businesses, and households in Pennsylvania. The event was organized by the House Policy Committee, chaired by Rep. Josh Kail.

The hearing titled "Relief is Possible: Combatting the Crisis of Cost" included testimonies from Doug Pascoe, Norm Candelore, Patrick Haver, and Kurt Couchman. They discussed how inflation affects essential services like fire and emergency medical services, small businesses facing high prices and labor shortages, and households struggling with housing costs, energy bills, child care expenses, and groceries.

According to Pennsylvania’s Joint Economic Committee State Inflation Tracker for 2024, "the average household in Pennsylvania is paying $984 more per month to purchase the same basket of goods and services as in January 2021." Additionally, food costs have increased by $140 per month compared to January 2021.

Kuzma stated his commitment to addressing these issues: “My constituents continually express to me their struggles with out-of-control rising prices," he said. "Mortgage rates have doubled the cost to buy a home. A dollar is only worth 80 cents today."

Kail added that Pennsylvanians should not live on tight budgets despite their hard work: “Prosperity is when you and your families... thrive," he said. "If you thrive, Pennsylvania thrives."