Maryland legislators are rushing to set up a relief fund and other benefits for businesses and workers impacted by the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse last week.
Lawmakers introduced the Protecting Opportunities and Regional Trade (PORT) Act on Tuesday, which will try to keep companies and employees that rely on the port afloat while crews work to remove debris from the bridge blocking safe passage.
The bill will establish a relief fund for businesses that are losing revenue due to the port being blocked to cargo ships.
“We learned through COVID that sometimes it's more efficient to do direct support to the small businesses,” said Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore). “They can retain their employees as opposed to having those small businesses lay off their employees and Have them a file for unemployment and then attempt to rehire them when the channel is reopened or when work resume.”
The bill also makes unemployment benefits more available for port workers who are out of work to ensure they are getting paid, even if they don’t qualify for full unemployment.
“We've proposed flexibility in and work search requirements for unemployment insurance,” said Gov. Wes Moore. “That way port workers who receive unemployment insurance will be ready to return to work at the port when operations move back to normal.”
The legislation allows the Maryland Department of Commerce to negotiate with businesses as the port becomes more operational as well.
Ferguson said Maryland does not want businesses to get too comfortable using other ports like Norfolk, Virginia and Charleston, South Carolina, that are picking up the shipping slack as Baltimore’s port is hobbled.
“We want to have the possibility of an incentive program to make sure that when the channel is open, that that business comes back to the Port of Baltimore so that it will thrive again,” Ferguson said.
Finally, the bill establishes a scholarship fund for the children of transportation workers who lose their lives while on the job.
On Monday, the Small Business Administration opened two recovery centers to help businesses impacted by the collapse.
SBA is only offering loans, not grants, to businesses for up to $2 million.
The General Assembly must pass the bill by Monday April 8th, the day it is scheduled to adjourn for the year.