South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley's recent appointments to her state's port authority board are raising concern about a cross-state project.

Officials from South Carolina's Beaufort and Jasper Counties have questioned the state's committment to the Jasper Ocean Terminal for a long time.

Beaufort and Jasper officials often have seemed at odds with their state's leaders over a decades-old proposal to build a new port on the Savannah River -- one that Charleston power brokers believe could be competition.

So when Haley's appointments didn't include any local names, one Beaufort-area South Carolina lawmaker -- Bill Herbkersman -- raised concern.

South Carolina ports authority board member Dave Posek says, it's an unfounded concern.

"We're all behind it 100% as a board," Posek says. "There's a requirement to have nine members and that's basically what she's done. It's her choice as to who she puts on that board."

Posek says, a task force assigned with moving the new port forward plans to meet this summer.

The proposed Jasper Ocean Terminal is a joint project between Georgia and South Carolina.

Tags: Savannah, South Carolina, Charleston, GPB News, Jasper County, Jasper Ocean Terminal, Joint Project Office, Beaufort County, Bill Herbkersman, Nikki Haley