PRESS Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MEDIA INQUIRIES
240-686-3510 | media@mdpolicy.org
 

ROCKVILLE, MD (April 3, 2024) — As crews continue to pull the wreckage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge out of the Patapsco River, lawmakers in Annapolis are negotiating this year’s state budget. The negotiations include tax and fee hikes on drivers along with a continuation of several costly government programs that are key contributors to an impending state budget deficit.

Maryland Public Policy Institute President and Chief Executive Officer Christopher Summers issued the following statement in response to the budget negotiations:

The Francis Scott Key Bridge Collapse is a tragedy for the families of the workers who lost their lives. It is also an economic calamity for the Marylanders whose livelihoods are tied to the transportation and trade enabled by such a key piece of infrastructure. It is consequently unbelievable that lawmakers in Annapolis are ignoring the principal problem facing our state with the most important piece of legislation they’ll enact this year. The content of their budget negotiations reveal that their priorities are the same now as they were before the bridge collapse: Hiking taxes on every-day Marylanders to pay for unsustainable pet projects and government expansion. For the good of every person affected by the collapse and the state economy, lawmakers must take a long, discerning look at their priorities and then change them.

A few simple and wise policy changes we recommend are to end the state takeover of the Pimlico Race Course, choose the bus rapid-transit alternative to the Red Line light rail project, and end the $40 billion Kirwan Commission Blueprint for Maryland's Future education spending plan. Each of these projects is extraordinarily wasteful, and each are material contributors to our state’s current budget problems — especially the Blueprint plan. Considering that we have no way of knowing how big of a detriment the bridge collapse will be to the region’s economy or how long it will take to build a new bridge, it is beyond imprudent to continue wasting taxpayers’ hard-earned money on these projects.

Lawmakers and Gov. Wes Moore should prioritize the people of Maryland and our economic recovery in this year’s state budget, not taking more of people’s money to pay for unnecessary and expensive ventures.

The Maryland Public Policy Institute is a nonpartisan public policy research and education organization that focuses on state policy issues. The Institute’s mission is to formulate and promote public policies at all levels of government based on principles of free enterprise, limited government, and civil society. Learn more at mdpolicy.org.