Maryland lawmakers introduce bill requiring feds to pay 100 percent of Baltimore bridge repair

Members of Maryland’s congressional delegation introduced a bill Thursday that would require the federal government to cover the entire cost of repairing the Baltimore bridge that collapsed after a ship hit it last month.

The legislation was introduced by Democratic Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and all eight Maryland House members: Kweisi Mfume (D), Andy Harris (R), Steny Hoyer (D), Dutch Ruppersberger (D), John Sarbanes (D), Jamie Raskin (D), David Trone (D) and Glenn Ivey (D).

In a statement, Van Hollen said, “Team Maryland is putting forward this bipartisan legislation to ensure the federal government covers the full cost of rebuilding the bridge as safely and quickly as possible — and that federal taxpayers benefit from any monies recovered from those found responsible.”

The legislation, titled the Baltimore Bridge Response Invests and Delivers Global Economic Relief Act, would “amend the federal cost-share requirement” for the Federal Highway Administration Emergency Relief Program for Disaster-Damaged Highways and Bridges.

It would ensure that the federal government covers 100 percent of the costs associated to rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore after it collapsed when a cargo ship hit it in late March.

The federal government typically picks up 90 percent of the costs while the state pays the remaining 10 percent when replacing disaster-damaged highways and bridges, but exceptions have been made in other emergency scenarios, Cardin said at a press conference this week.

The shipping vessel, the Dali, lost power while leaving Baltimore Harbor and slammed into the bridge. Since then, the Baltimore port has been closed, and traffic has been diverted to temporary channels as crews begin to pull out debris.

Six out of the eight construction workers on the bridge that night were killed in the collapse. The Coast Guard has begun its recovery efforts for three bodies still missing.

“The sudden collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge was a human tragedy and an economic tragedy — for Maryland and the nation. As we continue to mourn the loss of life and this icon of our skyline, we can simultaneously begin work to heal the wounds created by this disaster,” Cardin said in a statement Thursday.

President Biden visited the bridge last week and said he expects to have the Baltimore Port reopened by the end of May.

It’s unclear how much a new bridge would cost, but estimates are into the billions of dollars.