What to know about the possible pause on funding for the Cape Cod bridges
The Trump administration said Friday that it had paused $11 billion in funding for infrastructure projects in some Democratic-led cities, including Boston, raising concerns about the status of $600 million pledged to help replace the two Cape Cod bridges.
However, questions remained about the flow of money after state officials said they received no official notice of the decision.
The Army Corps of Engineers has committed $350 million to replace the Sagamore Bridge and $250 million to replace the Bourne Bridge, the pair of 90-year-old structures carrying traffic over the Cape Cod Canal.
On Friday afternoon, Russell Vought, director of President Trump's Office of Management and Budget, posted on X that the government shutdown had "drained the Army Corps of Engineers' ability to manage billions of dollars in projects."
"The Corps will be immediately pausing over $11 billion in lower-priority projects & considering them for cancellation, including projects in New York, San Francisco, Boston, and Baltimore," he said.
As of Friday afternoon, neither Gov. Maura Healey's administration nor the Massachusetts congressional delegation had been officially notified of any change to the funding, the governor said in a joint statement with Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey and Rep. Bill Keating, the congressman representing the Cape and Islands.
"The Cape Cod Bridges are federally-owned assets that carry millions of travelers a year, and are essential for the safety of Cape Codders and visitors from across the country and the world," the group, all Democrats, said. "This project is moving forward with funding appropriated by a bipartisan Congress and lawfully awarded by the federal government. Our focus remains on rebuilding both bridges and delivering the safe, reliable transportation infrastructure that our residents, visitors and businesses deserve."
The Army Corps operates the federally owned bridges, which provide the only route for vehicles between Cape Cod and the Massachusetts mainland, including for emergency evacuation.
But the bridges are "functionally obsolete," Healey's office said Friday, "and nearing the end of their usable life."
The federal government has committed to providing $1.72 billion for the projects, including the money pledged by the Army Corps. The state will also put up $700 million. The total cost to replace both bridges is estimated at $4.5 billion.
The government shutdown began Oct. 1 when Congress could not agree on a funding plan for the government.
The New York Times reported Sunday that there appeared to be "no end in sight" to the shutdown as it approached its three-week mark.
Republicans hold both houses of Congress, but to pass the budget are seeking the votes of Democrats who want any spending agreement to extend Affordable Care Act tax credits and preserve health care coverage for millions of Americans.
The longest government shutdown in American history lasted 35 days from December 2018 into January 2019, in Trump's first term. At 19 days as of Sunday, the current shutdown is the third-longest on record.
More on Politics
Read the original article on MassLive . Add MassLive as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
