Sometimes even the most jaundiced or gimlet eye misses the implications of subtle word changes in the budget. Fortunately, the N&O’s editorial board caught one of those related to the lottery funds. Here’s the section:

SECTION 5.2.(c) G.S. 18C‑162 reads as rewritten:

“? 18C‑162. Allocation of revenues.

(a) To the extent practicable, the The Commission shall allocate revenues to the North Carolina State Lottery Fund in the following manner: order to increase and maximize the available revenues for education purposes, and to the extent practicable, shall adhere to the following guidelines:

That change to “guidelines” in the service of “increas[ing] and maximiz[ing] the available revenue for education purposes” makes all the difference between a pretty-much guaranteed 35 percent and the governor’s preferred 29 percent education share. The Lottery Commission now has the authority to turn the 54 percent tax rate on lottery tickets into a 41 percent rate. From a purely experimental view, this is terrific. Despite states’ increasing reliance on lottery money, I don’t think anyone has done a Laffer Curve analysis of the tax rate on lottery tickets, however.