LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — Rep. Stephen Horsford, a candidate for Nevada’s 4th Congressional District, said he is focused on housing affordability, reducing costs and protecting Social Security.
Horsford said he was born and raised in Las Vegas and attended Clark High School and the University of Nevada, Reno. He said he ran the Culinary Training Academy, a job training program, for 10 years before he was elected to office.
“It’s been my life’s work to try to create opportunity for other people, whether that’s in the form of workforce, education, skills training, or just making sure communities don’t get left behind,” Horsford said.
Housing affordability
Horsford said one of his priorities is housing affordability, including cracking down on corporate speculators that are buying homes, particularly in working-class communities. He said he secured provisions in the 21st Century Road to Housing bill, which he said the House recently passed. He also cited legislation dealing with the Apex Industrial Park in North Las Vegas.
Asked about investors who have already bought homes, Horsford said the two largest residential property owners in Southern Nevada are hedge funds based outside Nevada, one in Texas and one in New York. “I’m not against investment, but I’m against people not being able to pursue the American dream, which in part is home ownership,” he said.
Horsford said the purchases have driven up rent, and he said the companies evict at a higher rate and do not maintain properties at the same level. He said the legislation that advanced out of the House puts limits on the number of homes corporate investors can buy in a single neighborhood.
Asked what he could do for a person struggling to save for a down payment, Horsford described a three-part housing platform:
- More access to land to build homes, which he said is included in the bill that passed the House.
- Eliminating tariffs that he said drive up the cost of construction materials.
- Streamlining the permitting process to get more homes built.
Horsford said buyers with offers on homes can be outbid by corporate speculators paying cash. He said interest rates also must come down. “There’s not one thing that’s going to fix it,” he said.
Interest rates, tariffs and the Relief Act
Asked what he can do about interest rates, Horsford said he is a member of the House Ways and Means Committee and was previously on the Financial Services Committee and its Subcommittee on Housing. He said part of the issue is accountability of regulatory agencies, including the Federal Reserve. He said oversight hearings and transparency measures, including his HOME Act, can help address the problem.
Asked to predict where interest rates will go in six months, Horsford said they will not come down unless the war in Iran ends, the tariffs end and the economy becomes more stable. He called the war “reckless” and said it is driving up the cost of gas. He said the Supreme Court ruled the tariffs illegal and that the money should be returned to people who paid it, including Nevada residents. He said the tariffs cost more than $1,800 annually.
Horsford said he introduced a bill called the Relief Act. He said that more than $170 billion has to be returned to those who paid the tariffs, and that large companies have lawyers and accountants to recover the money but small businesses and consumers do not. He said his bill calls for automatic refunds within 90 days with no red tape.
Horsford said a local grocery store and a restaurant told him the cost of cartons of items such as tomatoes and avocados had gone up “three, four, five fold.”
Iran
Asked about the situation with Iran, Horsford said his district includes Nellis Air Force Base, Creech Air Force Base, the Nevada Test and Training Range and Hawthorne Army Depot. He said it has a large share of active-duty service members, their families and veterans.
Horsford said constituents tell him they will do what is needed to defend the country but want a clear plan, an understanding of the U.S. interest and an exit plan. He said the administration did not have one at the beginning and does not have one now. He said that has resulted in increased costs at the gas pump.
Asked whether the threat from Iran’s nuclear capabilities would linger if the U.S. does not act, Horsford said Iran is dangerous and should be held accountable but that there is a way to do it without an endless war. He said such a war is too costly for the lives of the people he represents.
Response to challenger
The interviewer asked Horsford to respond to comments made by challenger Rhonda Kennedy in a previous interview. The interviewer said Kennedy told him Horsford has been taking the seat for granted for too long. Horsford said he is “the most present, hard-working, committed representative of Nevada’s 4th District.”
Horsford said he will be in Lincoln County for the dedication of a new affordable housing project. He said he secured water funding projects in Virgin Valley and Pahrump. He said the district covers 50,000 square miles.
The interviewer also read a comment he said Kennedy made that people in Horsford’s camp are tired of him and that she said “the historical West Side looks like Beirut.” Horsford said Kennedy “must not know where the historic West Side is.” He said he secured more than $200 million for a new housing development at Marble Manor and more than half a million dollars toward completion of the West Las Vegas Library. He said he worked with the College of Southern Nevada to bring a career and technical center to the area.
Horsford said he invites anyone running who does not live in the district to shadow him for a day.
Water
Asked about Lake Mead, Horsford said he grew up learning to fish there and called for a comprehensive water conservation plan. He said Nevada has done better on conservation than some other Western states.
Horsford said there is a new agreement with the Colorado River Commission that he described as the short-term plan while work continues on a longer-term priority. He said funding for water resources, conservation and investment in Lake Mead was secured in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill.
“Water is like gold,” Horsford said. “You’ve got to protect it, preserve it.”
Social Security
The interviewer asked about Social Security, citing AARP figures that the trust fund surplus will be depleted by 2034 and that benefits could then pay out 81% to 83%. Asked whether he takes responsibility for it not being fixed, Horsford said he is on the Social Security Subcommittee on Ways and Means and is the only candidate supported by the Committee to Preserve and Protect Social Security.
Horsford said the trust fund, which he said is separate from the federal budget, holds $2.8 trillion. He said the fix needs to address three things:
- Immigration, so that everyone who can pays into the system.
- The cap on income subject to the payroll tax, so people who make more than $400,000 contribute.
- What he called the biggest data breach in the country’s history, in which he said the Social Security Administration allowed DOGE to leak beneficiaries’ private medical, disability and identification information.
Horsford said he will not privatize Social Security or cut benefits. He said more than 70% of the constituents he represents rely on it as their only source of retirement income, and that it averages about $1,000 a month.
Closing message
Asked in a one-minute segment why voters should choose him, Horsford said he is “fighting for the people who make Nevada work.” He listed five priorities:
- Reducing the cost of living, including through the Relief Act.
- Protecting health care and supporting child care and elder care.
- Supporting education and skills development, particularly in AI and technology.
- Supporting small businesses, which he said make up 90% of businesses in Nevada.
- Electing representatives who focus on people instead of partisanship.
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