Andy Harris among Republicans pushing for earmarks in government funding deal

Ben Mause, The Baltimore Sun on Aug 19, 2025

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WASHINGTON — Republicans are looking to include community project funding in the next government spending bill, a return to past years when members of Congress could funnel money directly to their districts. The potential move could bring over $300 million to local developments across Maryland.

Rep. Andy Harris, an Eastern Shore Republican, is among the lawmakers pushing for a government funding plan that includes community project funding, according to Politico. Harris is a fiscal conservative who chairs the House Freedom Caucus, a group that is typically resistant to increasing government spending.

His office did not respond to a request for comment.

Some conservatives supportive of the project funding hope that including it will help avoid a more costly government funding package. Harris is a member of the House Appropriations Committee, which oversees funding the government. Harris’ spot on the committee is uniquely powerful given his additional position as chairman of the Freedom Caucus. He’s a voice that speaks to members of both, hoping to bend the committee closer to the Freedom Caucus’ fiscal priorities while guiding the caucus’ response to the proposed funding.

In addition to earmarks, Harris has been a public advocate for Congress to claw back government funding that has already been appropriated. Congress passed a $9 billion clawback, known as a rescissions package, in July.

“Additional rescissions packages are a win for taxpayers,” Harris said in July. “Every dollar clawed back is money returned to the people.”

Some Democrats have said that the threat of additional rescissions is damaging to negotiations to fund the government. Rep. Johnny Olszewski, a Baltimore County Democrat, previously told The Baltimore Sun that any funding bill allowing for further rescissions packages would be a “nonstarter.”

Lawmakers can request community project funding to be set aside for developments in their districts. Community project funding is a revision of congressional earmarks. Earmarks are individual allocations of federal money for local projects that any lawmaker can request be included in the annual government funding bills.

Republicans temporarily banned earmarks in 2011, but Democrats resurrected the practice 10 years later with stricter ethical guidelines. Before being banned, earmarks were a means for members to directly aid their districts with federal dollars for projects that were beyond the scale of local governments. They were often criticized as hotbeds for wasteful spending that lacked oversight.

Community development funding wasn’t included in the March government spending bill after being removed by House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a South Dakota Republican.

Maryland House members have requested over $341 million in federal dollars for projects in their districts, with each submitting applications for 15 projects. The requests ranged from $51,550 to expand a food pantry in Westminster to $16 million in upgrades for the Middle River Volunteer Fire Department.

Harris led the delegation with over $99 million in requested project funding, including the $16 million for Middle River VFD and another $16 million for train track repairs in the Eastern Shore.

Rep. Glenn Ivey, a Prince George’s County Democrat, was second among Maryland House members. He requested over $77 million in project funding. Among Ivey’s requests were $16 million to renovate Attick Towers Apartments in College Park and over $1 million for the Center for Artificial Intelligence at the University of Maryland. Ivey is also a member of the House Appropriations Committee.

Funding for the federal government will expire on September 30, giving Congress less than a month to avoid a shutdown once it returns from summer recess. Including earmarks is a potential path forward, but it is not the only one, according to one member of the committee. Negotiations are ongoing and various ideas are being discussed, including potentially using some of the money raised through tariffs to pay down the national debt.

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