Rebuilding Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge could cost more than $5 billion — more than double the $1.9 billion estimate Maryland officials outlined shortly after the crucial arterial span fell into the Patapsco River last year, two people engaged in the discussions told POLITICO.
That could give fresh fuel to President Donald Trump, who late last month flirted with yanking federal funding for the bridge after quarreling on social media with Democratic Maryland Gov. Wes Moore — a potential presidential candidate — about the crime rate in Baltimore.
“I gave Wes Moore a lot of money to fix his demolished bridge. I will now have to rethink that decision???” Trump wrote on Truth Social. Asked about Trump’s comments soon after, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said he was concerned about the federal government covering all of the bridge’s rebuilding costs, explaining that “if you go to dinner and someone else is buying, you might order the finest, most expensive steak on the menu.”
A spokesperson for DOT did not respond to a request for comment. The Maryland Transportation Authority did not respond to a request for comment. The White House did not respond to a request for comment. Moore’s office did not respond to a request for comment. But at the time of Trump’s posting, Moore responded that Maryland officials “worked across the aisle to secure funding to rebuild this iconic bridge, an action that is written into law because of the leaders who put politics aside to make Baltimore whole again.”
In the waning days of President Joe Biden’s administration, Congress enacted a bill requiring the federal government to fully fund the bridge’s rebuild. It’s not clear how Trump could yank back any funding short of an act of Congress.
And lawmakers are already working on another emergency supplemental, including a cash infusion for the ongoing bridge rebuild.
Rep. Steve Womack (R-Ark.), chair of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee on Appropriations, said in an interview Thursday that he wants to move a supplemental appropriations bill as soon as possible that he expects will have around $1 billion for the bridge.
“That bridge is not going to get any cheaper the longer we delay committing the funding to build it,” Womack said. “And it’s not just the cost of the bridge which is going to escalate in price, but it’s also the value of having complete access in that port, and you know, to be able to move goods and material through that through that area, and that there’s a cost associated with it.”
“Obviously, we’re going to be a partner in it, because you can’t do that on your own. But I’m worried about any further delays in committing the funding. I understand there’s like $900 million needed immediately to be able to keep this thing on track,” Womack added.
Some Republican lawmakers said they were open to reducing the federal cost share.
Rep. Michael Guest (R-Miss.), who sits on the House Appropriations Committee, said “I would definitely support, and I believe those inside our conference from any state that is not Maryland, would support lowering the federal cost share.”
Womack said he would be amenable to lowering it to 90 percent — but only after it became clear that the rest of the costs could be covered by revenues recovered from insurance claims and court cases.
“Only if the insurance settlement that has already been approved and the litigation settlement that will be somewhere down the road. I would think that you could look at what the expected receipts would be from insurance and legal settlement versus the additional cost, and then factor in inflation and additional costs associated with the time value of money, then it becomes a mathematical exercise,” Womack said.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) said he doesn’t expect Congress to touch the 100 percent federal commitment.
“It’s built into the law right now. That would require, in the Senate, 60 votes. I don’t think people are going to mess with that,” Van Hollen said.
