South Carolina’s budget writers have set aside $300 million to deepen Charleston Harbor beyond its current 45 feet, enough to pay for the entire project if the federal government doesn’t come through with its share.

A conference committee of House and Senate leaders announced the amended state budget Thursday, raising the money in the Harbor Deepening Reserve Fund from the $180 million both chambers had approved earlier, according to the South Carolina State Ports Authority.

The authority said the $300 million would cover the entire estimated cost of deepening the harbor to 50 feet.

“We are tremendously grateful for the forward-thinking leadership in our legislature for recognizing how vital this project is to the entire state,” said Bill Stern, chairman of the authority’s board.

Covering Washington’s share, too

Under the cost-sharing formula for a deepening past 45 feet, the state would pay 60%, or $180 million, according to the authority. The extra $120 million in the fund would cover the federal share of construction if federal money isn’t available, and could also be used to keep the work moving without delays for lack of funding.

The fund is meant to pay for construction once the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers finishes its feasibility study and Congress authorizes the project. Spending from it would also need approval from the Joint Bond Review Committee, made up of House and Senate members, the authority said.

“Last budget year, we committed that our state would find the money for this project,” said Sen. Hugh Leatherman, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. “South Carolina has now fulfilled our end of the bargain, and we look forward to the Corps of Engineers delivering a timely study so that the work can get underway as expeditiously as possible.”

Rep. Brian White, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, pointed to the port’s pull for companies outside the Lowcountry.

“A large number of the companies that located in the Upstate and call South Carolina home chose our state because of our world-class port,” White said.

Part of a bigger budget deal

The harbor money is part of a $6.7 billion spending plan that also phases in a tax cut for small-business owners over three years and gives most state employees a 3% raise, The Associated Press reported Wednesday.

The House and Senate both adopted the compromise Thursday, according to the Legislature’s records. Gov. Nikki Haley will have five days, not counting Sunday and the July Fourth holiday, to issue line-item vetoes, the AP reported.

The House Ways and Means Committee first created the reserve fund in February with $180 million, which matched the state’s 60% share of the estimated cost, the authority said at the time.

Racing for bigger ships

The deepening’s feasibility study began last summer. In February, the president’s budget for fiscal 2013 included $3.5 million toward the study. With that and money already in the Corps’ work plan, the federal share of the study is more than half funded, according to the authority.

The authority says Charleston is already the deepest harbor in the region, and that the deepening would let the biggest ships reach the port at any hour and any tide. In a 2010 reconnaissance study, the Corps called Charleston likely “the cheapest South Atlantic harbor to deepen to 50 feet,” the authority said.

“This level of commitment instills a great deal of confidence in our customers and shows that the Port of Charleston is ready and able to meet their long-term growth needs,” said Jim Newsome, the authority’s president and CEO.

Sen. Larry Grooms, who chairs the Senate Transportation Committee and the legislative commission that oversees the authority, called the money “a major win.”

“If we want our state to grow, if we want to welcome new jobs, if we want to succeed on the world stage, our port must stay competitive,” Grooms said.

The authority says port operations support 260,800 jobs in South Carolina and nearly $45 billion in economic activity each year.