:format(jpg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/baltimorebanner/BGSZC7U6LZFLTB5NL6XFXX2JNI.jpeg)
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore on Friday urged state lawmakers in the final days of their legislative session to prioritize passing the state budget and legislation, action that will help those affected by the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.
Passing the budget would “provide certainty at this challenging and uncertain time,” Moore said, standing on a windswept field in Sparrows Point, with the wreckage of the bridge visible behind him.
“We are 10 days away from the conclusion of the legislative session and there’s a lot to do,” said Moore, a Democrat. “The top priority in that work is going to be finalizing our budget. My administration proposed a responsible budget that makes important investments in housing and child care and environmental protection and transportation.”
Democratic leaders in the House of Delegates and the state Senate have been at odds over details of the budget. Moore urged them to find compromise “as soon as possible.”
While the Senate approved a version similar to Moore’s proposal, which avoided broad-based tax and fee increases, the House’s version raises more money for the state, chiefly through fully legalizing online gambling and requiring multistate corporations to calculate their tax payments differently. The House also proposed more targeted fee increases and directed the Maryland Transportation Authority to raise more money through tolls.
House leaders have said it’s important to raise money to pay for looming expensive commitments to improve public schools and maintain and expand the state’s transportation network. Senate leaders, meanwhile, have said there’s enough state money for now.
:format(jpg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/baltimorebanner/IGNMFTCXN5HABGXFFGKRRQUYEA.jpg)
A joint House-Senate budget conference committee began its work earlier this week, but put off most of their difficult decisions to at least Monday. The General Assembly is scheduled to adjourn one week from then, on April 8.
The budget will cover government spending for a 12-month period that begins July 1. The federal government is expected to pay for the lion’s share of the work to clear the Patapsco River shipping channel and eventually rebuild the bridge, following a pledge from President Joe Biden. Already, the federal government has committed $60 million for cleanup.
The governor also said he wanted to establish scholarships for the families of the six construction workers who were killed when the bridge collapsed.
And he urged lawmakers to build flexibility into legislation that they’re considering to help workers and businesses affected by the closure of the Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore.
The Maryland Protecting Opportunities and Regional Trade Act, or “PORT Act,” was formally introduced in the Maryland General Assembly earlier in the day on Friday.
The bill’s sponsors, Senate President Bill Ferguson and Del. Luke Clippinger, have outlined three goals:
- Providing “income replacement” for workers displaced by the port closure.
- Providing financial support for contractors, small businesses and workers who operate as LLCs.
- Offering funding to port-related businesses to incentivize them to keep their work in Baltimore, rather than permanently relocate to another port.
The PORT Act would pull an unspecified amount of money from the state’s Rainy Day Fund.
Clippinger, a Baltimore Democrat whose district includes part of the port and the bridge site, said he hopes the programs will only be needed in the short term.
“The cost is something that we’re very, very mindful of, but at the same time, we also want to make sure that we have that basic level of protection that families need to be able to get by,” Clippinger told reporters at the State House. “Look: People woke up on Monday and went to work. They woke up on Tuesday and their jobs were gone.”
Moore did not formally endorse the PORT Act during his press conference, but said any legislation needs to include flexibility for how the programs can be implemented.
“We cannot possibly find every answer to every problem in the next few days before session ends,” Moore said.
Lawmakers also are considering legislation that would create a new type of limited, long-term state of emergency that a governor could declare for emergencies involving critical infrastructure. The bill is from Republican Sens. Bryan Simonaire and Johnny Ray Salling, whose districts are on opposite shores of the Patapsco River by the bridge site.
Simonaire emphasized that the vast powers available to a governor during a state of emergency, including the ability to use private property for government needs, are not necessary for a situation like the rebuild of the Key Bridge.
“States of emergency were never meant for long-term projects,” Salling said during a brief hearing on his bill before a Senate committee Friday morning.
The committee did not vote on the bill, with Chairman Sen. Brian Feldman, a Montgomery County Democrat, saying that more research on the bill’s implications was needed.
“I’d hate to rush something without getting some feedback,” Feldman said.
:quality(70)/s3.amazonaws.com/arc-authors/baltimorebanner/5cb65d14-97ab-4109-b5b8-a9725b08e72d.png)
Pamela Wood covers Maryland politics and government. She previously reported for The Baltimore Sun, The Capital and other Maryland newspapers. A graduate of the University of Maryland, College Park, she lives in northern Anne Arundel County.
:format(jpg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/baltimorebanner/TBZL5637TBERBJ7OFK4HA554UI.png)
:format(jpg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/baltimorebanner/GTCCVJZJVNETVJQAABDIYOSCW4.JPG)
:format(jpg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/baltimorebanner/C5RNK4UYEZHJ5KRAE5TAXBVZEM.jpg)
:format(jpg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/baltimorebanner/SAIF3W6YERGZFPARMH64PQNMEM.jpg)