Rep. Tracy Edge, R-North Myrtle Beach, a member of the Ways and Means Committee that wrote the House version of the budget, said informal discussions were taking place last week on how to resolve the differences.

That is why House action on the Senate version was delayed last week. Some House leaders are hoping they can reach a quick agreement with the Senate, avoid the usual conference committee that sometimes spends weeks working out the differences, and go home early.

The absence of The Myrtle Beach Pavilion Amusement Park is having drastically different effects on the businesses that remain along Ocean Boulevard, depending on the type of business and its location.

Crowds still flock to the area as they have every summer - though no one has official numbers to compare to previous years - but the stores and attractions those tourists frequent are being shaped by the 11-acre hole the park has left.