The GOP is drawing up a list of demands ahead of the Baltimore bridge funding vote
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The conservative House Freedom Caucus is demanding that the reconstruction of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge should not become a “pork-filled” spending palooza on the same day Biden is scheduled to visit the disaster site. The president is expected to arrive at the collapsed bridge on Friday, more than a week after a shipping container collided with the structure and destroyed it, ultimately claiming six lives.
He has said that reconstruction efforts will receive “all the federal resources they need” and that the federal government will cover the costs. Because the structure is partially submerged in the water, the entire Port of Baltimore is blocked, meaning ships cannot enter or leave the busy trading hub. The reconstruction project is expected to cost billions to repair and the consequences of halting trade are already having a dramatic impact on businesses.
Now conservatives say the cost of repairs should be offset and, if possible, not come out of taxpayer dollars. “Before Congress considers any additional emergency funding for the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, it is important that (1) we first require the maximum liability in advance from the foreign shipping companies and (2) the Port of Baltimore draws on already available federal funds,” the group wrote in a memo published Friday.
Earlier this week, several operators of the ship, named Dali, filed a petition in U.S. federal court seeking to limit the liability they owe for causing the crash. They cited a law from the 1850s that could help them limit their liability to about the total cost of the ship, which they say is $43.7 million. But reports indicate that reconstruction costs could reach $2 billion, almost 50 times more expensive than the price operators are willing to pay.
Claims against the ship operators must be filed in a federal court in Baltimore by September 24, according to a federal judge. “If it becomes necessary to appropriate taxpayer dollars to bring one of America’s busiest ports back online, Congress must ensure that it is fully compensated and that burdensome regulations are waived to prevent all unnecessary delays and costs to prevent.’
The conservative group also demands that the money allocated for the project be strictly “limited to repairs of physical structures with a federal nexus.” “This should not be a pork-filled bill full of unrelated projects,” the memo said. The group states that they want the bridge funding vote to adhere to the single-subject rule, indicating that if there are additional measures attached to the legislation, they can oppose it.
“Finally, the Biden administration’s pause on approving liquefied natural gas export terminals — which, like the port closure in Baltimore, has serious implications for foreign trade — must be lifted before Congress considers any funding for the reconstruction of the bridge to be assigned.’ The pause in liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports has been a particular sticking point for Republicans in recent months.
The Biden administration halted LNG exports earlier this year to conduct an environmental review of the process, which Republicans have labeled unnecessary and harmful to the sector. However, the conservative group’s sentiment may not be shared by all Republicans. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said earlier this week that the federal government would pay the “lion’s share” of the cost of rebuilding the bridge.
