Military earmarks to bring millions to SC and Beaufort County

Inside the $533 billion Defense Department appropriation bill wending its way through Congress is $200 million earmarked for projects and businesses in South Carolina.

While about half of the spending is targeted for construction and weapons projects, the rest isgoing to research and development work that could make a difference in saving troops' lives.

In addition, money for the R&D projects would help boost the state's fledging defense industry and bolster the standing of S.C. military bases with the Pentagon and Congress, supporters say.

"Anytime we can get defense work done in South Carolina, it clearly has a positive impact on our economy," said George Patrick, executive coordinator of the S.C. Military Base Task Force. The panel was formed by the state to assist communities in supporting their local bases.

Military spending in South Carolina totals about $6 billion a year, including pensions and benefits for retirees, according to Pentagon figures.

Yet major defense contractors, such as Boeing and General Dynamics, don't have factories in the Palmetto State.

Focusing efforts on smaller companies, though, could pay off.

"Quite frankly a myriad of smaller defense contractors do business with the big boys," said Patrick, a retired S.C. Air National Guard major general and F-16 fighter pilot.

Many of the earmarks sponsored by S.C. congressmen are aimed at the development of cutting-edge technology designed to protect troops and benefit civilians. Some examples:

• $3.3 million to AGY Holding Corp., an Aiken company developing high-strength glass fiber used for light-weight armor plating on Humvees and other troop transport vehicles.

• $4 million to the University of South Carolina and the S.C. National Guard for research in helicopter maintenance.

• $3 million to Lifeblood Medical in Columbia to better preserve organs and tissues, possibly sparing wounded troops from having limbs amputated.

By earmarking appropriations, congressmen can guarantee where the money will be spent.

Even critics of earmarking, including Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., whose district includes Beaufort County and who complained last year that the process needed reform, backed $117 million in earmarks in the proposed 2010 defense budget.

Earmarked programs have to show they can save the taxpayer money and benefit the military, said Wilson spokesman Ryan Murphy.

"The congressman won't ask for a project he doesn't believe in," Murphy said.

Developing high-tech defense businesses like AGY and Lifeblood, along with university research programs, could solidify the future of the state's military bases, Patrick said.

South Carolina, he noted, already has a built-in labor pool for the industry because of the thousands of military veterans and retirees who've settled in the state.

And it's possible the companies would locate near the bases in Columbia, Sumter, Charleston and Beaufort, Patrick added. Defense company employees would be "built-in lobbyists to not have that base closed," Patrick said.

Growing the state's defense industry could stop encroachment of housing developments and commercial shopping near bases, Patrick said.

"I don't want a high-density neighborhood in the approach forMarine Corps Air Station at Beaufort," Patrick said. "But a defense-type business would be a perfect neighbor."