WASHINGTON — GOP Texas Rep. Kevin Brady announced Wednesday he won’t seek reelection next year.
The veteran Houston-area lawmaker currently serves as the top Republican on the Ways and Means Committee, with broad jurisdiction over taxes, trade, health care policy and entitlement programs generally.
“This term, my 13th, will be the last,” Brady said in a statement. “I set out to give my constituents the representation you deserve, the effectiveness you want and the economic freedom you need. I hope I delivered.”
Brady was a driving force behind the 2017 tax code overhaul that slashed the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%, lowered individual rates and removed deductions such as unlimited write-offs for state and local taxes.
Every district in the country will be redrawn this year to accommodate the 2020 census results, and Texas’ map will changed more than most because the state could pick up two seats.
Still, Brady’s 8th District has been reliably Republican. He beat his Democratic opponent by 47 percentage points in November, when President Donald Trump beat Democratic nominee Joe Biden by 43 points.
