HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) — For the second budget cycle in a row, Gov. Henry McMaster has excluded any funding toward the construction of Interstate 73 through Horry County despite still supporting the project, a spokesman told News13 on Monday. McMaster's $13 billion 2025-26 general fund spending plan includes $247 million for the state Department of Transportation. PREVIOUS: Interstate 73 could be expanding into South Carolina, near Myrtle Beach "There is no infrastructure more in need of investment than our state's roads, bridges, highways and interstates. Because our booming economy and rapid population growth have outpaced the state's ability to keep up with improvements to our transportation infrastructure, we must continue to make big, bold and transformative investments," McMaster wrote in his executive budget proposal unveiled Monday. But with the future of I-73 still up in the air, McMaster is hesitant to commit any state funds without assurance that federal and local aid is locked in, his office said. "While Gov. McMaster continues to support the expansion of I-73, he will not recommend funding for the project until there is stronger support from local officials," spokesman Brandon Charochak told News13. A finished I-73 is estimated to create 29,000 jobs and cut evacuation times by up to 15 hours. Officials said it would take about $300 million to build out the first 6 miles to Highway 501 with an I-95 interchange. The total cost is about $2 billion. The roughly 80-mile highway would be South Carolina’s sixth interstate, linking the state’s tourism hub directly to the North Carolina border through rural areas of the Pee Dee, running from Rockingham, North Carolina through Marlboro and Dillon counties. McMaster in 2021 asked lawmakers to include $300 million in the state’s budget dedicated toward the completion of I-73, calling the project a “transformative component” in South Carolina’s economic future. City and county councils from across the region have pledged financial support for I-73, echoing MacMaster’s prediction of its success. But those promises hinge on guaranteed funding streams from state and federal sources. Horry County leaders in 2021 rejected a proposal to put up $4.2 million a year for 30 years or $126 million in all toward the construction of I-73 using hospitality fee revenues, saying at the time there wasn’t a clear fiscal path forward.