Public Record
Taxes and Andy Harris
He says he’s fighting for working families and fiscal discipline. His tax votes overwhelmingly benefit corporations and high-income earners— while expanding deficits later used to justify cuts to public services.
What Harris says publicly
Andy Harris presents himself as a champion of fiscal responsibility and lower taxes for working families. On his official issue pages and in public statements, he emphasizes opposition to “wasteful spending,” claims to protect taxpayers, and frames tax cuts as a way to strengthen the economy and help families keep more of what they earn.
The message is consistent: Andy Harris wants voters to believe he stands with everyday taxpayers.
Voting record
Where Harris has supported tax relief for constituents
Backed Maryland gas tax holiday to provide direct family relief
Harris supported extending Maryland's gas tax holiday through the end of 2022, providing direct and immediate cost relief to Eastern Shore commuters and working families during a period of unusually high fuel prices. (Source: Wikipedia — Andy Harris)
Where Harris has opposed tax equity measures
Voted for the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act — which overwhelmingly benefited the wealthy and corporations, not working families
Harris voted for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which permanently slashed the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% while providing only temporary and far smaller benefits to middle- and lower-income households. The Tax Policy Center found that households in the top 1% received an average tax cut of $61,090 by 2025, while the bottom 60% of American households received an average cut of less than $500. The CBO found that by 2027, households earning under $75,000 — about 76% of taxpayers — would be net contributors to deficit reduction, while households above $75,000 would be net beneficiaries. Corporate savings went largely toward stock buybacks — which rose more than 50% to $560 billion in 2018 — rather than worker wages. Brookings Institution concluded the law "disproportionately increased incomes for the most affluent." Harris then voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill (2025), which extended these same tax cuts for another decade, adding an estimated $4.1 trillion to the national debt. (Source: Econofact — TCJA distributional analysis; Brookings — TCJA analysis; Wikipedia — Tax Cuts and Jobs Act)
Opposed tax increases on corporations and the wealthy, even as working families bore a larger share of the cost
Harris has consistently voted against proposals to raise taxes on corporations and high-income households — including voting against the Inflation Reduction Act's 15% corporate minimum tax, which was designed to ensure large profitable companies paid at least a floor rate after years of paying nothing. At the same time, he has supported budget frameworks that cut Medicaid, SNAP, and education — programs working families depend on — to offset the cost of those tax cuts. Cutting taxes at the top while cutting services at the bottom is itself a transfer of resources from working families to wealthy ones. (Source: GovTrack — Harris votes; Congress.gov — Harris)
Voted against the Inflation Reduction Act's corporate minimum tax
Harris voted against the Inflation Reduction Act, which included a 15% corporate minimum tax on large companies — a provision designed to ensure corporations paying no taxes due to deductions paid a floor rate. Critics of Harris's vote said it protected tax avoidance by large corporations. (Source: GovTrack — Harris votes)
Backed budget frameworks that shifted costs to working families
Harris supported House Republican budget resolutions that proposed cutting Medicaid, SNAP, and education programs — effective tax on working families through reduced services — while maintaining tax cuts for higher-income households. (Source: GovTrack — Harris report card)
Why it matters
Working families are left behind
When tax cuts are skewed toward corporations and high-income earners:
- Wages don’t rise at the same pace as costs
- Public services face cuts or underfunding
- Families shoulder higher out-of-pocket expenses elsewhere
Tax relief for the wealthy doesn’t trickle down — it drains resources upward.
Deficits become an excuse for cuts
Harris supports tax cuts that inflate the deficit, then points to that same deficit to argue against investments in people.
Tax cuts for the wealthy → larger deficits → austerity for everyone else.
Impact on Maryland’s Eastern Shore
Communities across Maryland’s Eastern Shore rely heavily on:
- Federal infrastructure investment
- Health care access, including rural hospitals
- Agricultural and maritime support
- Small-business programs
When federal revenue is reduced through top-heavy tax cuts, rural and working-class regions feel the consequences first — while wealthy households remain insulated.
Public Statements and Voting Record
Bottom line: Public Statements and Voting Record
Where he has supported tax relief
- Backed Maryland gas tax holiday providing direct relief to Eastern Shore commuters (2022)
Where he has opposed tax equity
- Voted for 2017 tax law that gave top 1% an avg. $61,090 cut; bottom 60% less than $500 (Tax Policy Center)
- Voted against corporate minimum tax; opposed tax increases on corporations and the wealthy
- Backed budgets cutting Medicaid, SNAP, and education to offset tax cuts for the wealthy
- Voted to extend those same tax cuts via the One Big Beautiful Bill, adding $4.1 trillion in new debt (2025)