Shape of post-election politics could affect funding for Port of Morgan City

The shape of post-election Washington could have effects that flow all the way down the Atchafalaya and into other commercial waterways.
The Morgan City Harbor and Terminal District board heard about some of the potential impacts at its regular meeting Monday. Those effects could determine how well the Corps of Engineers and the port district will be able to keep commercially important waterways open here.
The nation has been fixated on the presidential race, where Democrat Joe Biden has claimed victory and incumbent Republican Donald Trump is challenging the counting of mail-in ballots in court.
But Congress is also a battleground after Republicans trimmed the Democratic majority in the House, and control of the Senate hinges on two Georgia runoffs in which GOP candidates are the favorites.
Charles Bittingham of Cassidy & Associates represents the Port of Morgan City’s interests in the nation’s capital. He outlined two potential impacts via Zoom at Monday’s meeting.
One is the Water Resources Development Act. The House passed its version of the every-two-years legislation in July and included a provision that would free more of the $10 billion Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund for use on improvements such as dredging.
After flooding in 2018 and 2019 and this year’s low water, the port district is scrambling to keep local waterways open, a task that usually requires federal funds for dredging.
The trust fund is supported by a tax of $1.25 per $1,000 in cargo value moving through the nation’s ports.
Some officials, including former 3rd Congressional District Rep. Charles Boustany, R-Lafayette, and shipping industry groups have accused Congress of hanging on to harbor maintenance money so the expenditures aren’t counted against statutory spending limits.
The House-passed 2020 measure essentially removes Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund spending from the federal spending limit calculation. It also includes a provision requiring 20% of the trust fund spending to go to what are called “emerging ports,” or those that handle less than 1 million tons of cargo each year, according to the bipartisan Congressional Research Service. Currently, 10% of trust fund spending is earmarked for the smaller ports.
The Senate has taken a different approach, splitting the legislation into separate bills for water transportation projects and drinking water projects. Members of the two chambers will have to work out their differences in a conference committee.
Bittingham is hopeful legislation making its way through Congress will include enough discretionary spending to allow at least $6 million-$8 million and as much as $12 million-$15 million for the Port of Morgan City.
As for the political climate in Washington, Bittingham said, “I think we’re going to see a lot of firebrand politics coming out of the house and a lot of slow-moving politics coming out of the Senate.”