Baltimore Expands Sewage Cleanup Aid

Baltimore will pay for sewage cleanup in homes during dry weather, Mayor Brandon Scott announced Wednesday.

The policy shift removes a long-standing restriction that limited city funding to overflows caused by heavy rain. Under the previous rules, public works officials often rejected applications from residents who suffered backups due to clogs or debris when it was not raining. The new approach allows the Department of Public Works to use its existing budget to reimburse homeowners for these dry-weather incidents.

The federal government has monitored Baltimore's sewage system under a consent decree since 2002. This agreement requires the city to set aside $2 million annually to help homeowners affected by backups. Although the city launched a pilot program in 2021 to send crews to homes for cleanup, it rarely spent the full annual amount. Officials cited the dry-weather eligibility rule as the primary reason for the low payout rates.

Critics from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and local City Council members pushed for the change for years. The EPA ordered the city to broaden access in 2023, but Baltimore initially resisted the directive. City leaders argued that the federal decree did not explicitly mandate aid for events that occurred without rain. In January 2025, council members passed a unanimous resolution urging the Scott administration to expand the support.

The mayor's announcement came just hours before a City Council hearing where officials planned to question the public works department on its handling of the program. Councilman Paris Gray, who initiated the hearing, welcomed the decision. He noted that the expansion helps vulnerable families recover from unexpected events. "A backup doesn't wait for a storm, and neither should the help," Gray said in a joint release.

Scott stated in a news release that residents need to feel safe in their homes and know where to turn during a crisis. The public works department developed the expanded plan in coordination with the Maryland Department of Environment. That state agency had also urged the city to provide aid for dry-weather backups.