Barge operators and users of the inland waterways are urging Congress to adopt a new cost-sharing formula that would make more money available for lock and dam construction.
The Inland Waterways Trust Fund, which pays for new lock and dam construction, is currently financed through a 50-50 match between diesel tax revenues paid by the inland barge industry, and funds from the U.S. treasury. Money is then dispersed to priority construction projects along the inland river system which are managed...