ANNAPOLIS, MD—Governor Wes Moore on Tuesday signed legislation to support Marylanders and businesses impacted by the recent Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse. The Maryland Protecting Opportunities and Regional Trade (PORT) Act measures include creating a scholarship program for families of transportation workers who die on the job and increasing flexibility in work search requirements for unemployment insurance.

“Two weeks ago, a piece of the Baltimore skyline and Baltimore spirit plunged into the river. But Marylanders have rallied,” said Governor Moore. “When tragedy struck our state, we banded together to support those affected by the Key Bridge collapse. Together, we are proving what it means to be Maryland Tough and Baltimore Strong.”

The new laws also expand job opportunities for Maryland’s military families, expand workers’ compensation presumptions for firefighters, protect election workers, and increase the amount of disaster service leave for executive branch employees.

These are just a few of the measures outlined in the legislation package, which was crafted to support the governor’s priorities of making Maryland safer, more affordable, more competitive, and continuing to make Maryland the state that serves.

The complete list of bills that was signed into law is available here and additional information on the PORT Act is available online here.

This article was written with the assistance of AI and reviewed by a human editor.

Photo via the Maryland Governor’s Office