The efforts of the Horry County Solid Waste Authority to maintain its monopoly control of the county’s garbage was big business for lobbying firms during the recent legislative session as the SWA paid its lobbyists a whopping $263,888.40 during the first six months of the year.

For those of you who saw reports in local media and other blogs of a much smaller amount, $77,479, the difference is what was paid by the SWA in June 2012.

Rather than being ranked 21st on the list of entities in the state that pay big money to lobbyists, the June payments raised the SWA to the number two spot, only marginally behind the $276,000 AT&T paid to lobbyists this year to influence state legislators.