NC Capitol Strategies

The North Carolina Blockchain + AI Initiative (NCB+AI) is a 501(c)(6) advocacy organization dedicated to making North Carolina the leading state for blockchain and AI. Founded in 2019 by Lieutenant Governor Dan Forest the NC Blockchain Initiative task force was one of the first state government efforts to explore blockchain technology and its economic potential. This foundational work has paved the way for NCB+AI's current mission. Historically, the blockchain and AI sectors have been fragmented, with companies and stakeholders pursuing separate agendas, which has hindered industry growth and meaningful legislation. NCB+AI aims to change this by uniting the industry under a common voice, connecting companies, innovators, and policymakers to promote smart, forward-looking policies that North Carolina's tech sector deserves. With major players already in the state, the momentum is building, and NCB+AI is committed to ensuring it leads to significant advancements. Learn more at ncblockchainai.com

@CampbellforNC Families impacted by ASD appreciate your work to reform the law, and provide appropriate guidelines to protect the benefits for those who are truly in need. Thank you for the hours you spent digging into the details. Some seek headlines - you sought results!

“Campbell was a !&%! pit bull about ABA reform in Medicaid negotiations.” Now you know why. #ncpol nytimes.com/2026/05/23/hea…

Public policy changes are often well intended, yet they still fail miserably. “While neither smoking nor vaping is entirely safe, current evidence indicates substantively greater health harm from smoking than vaping nicotine products,” said first author Abigail S. Friedman, an associate professor in the YSPH Department of Health Policy & Management. “These policies’ public health costs may outweigh their benefits.” Key Findings: For every 0.7 milliliters of e-cigarette e-liquid that goes unsold due to flavor restrictions, 15 additional traditional cigarettes are sold. Of the increase in cigarette sales, 71% were non-menthol cigarettes, suggesting that restrictions on menthol cigarettes would not substantially reduce sales. E-cigarette flavor restrictions in place for a year or longer yielded 20% increases in sales of cigarette brands disproportionately used by underage smokers. Where e-cigarette flavor restrictions had been in effect for at least a year, sales of cigarette brands favored by adults went up by 10%, while sales of cigarette brands that disproportionately attract underage smokers saw a 20% bump. In light of these results, policymakers might want to consider other approaches to protect public health where tobacco is concerned, the authors wrote in the study. “Some leading scholars have advocated for regulating tobacco products proportionate to their risk,” they wrote. “This approach would avoid giving more lethal combustible products [such as cigarettes] a competitive advantage over less lethal alternatives…[and] could mean more flavors being available in [vapes] than cigarettes.” The authors report that they have no conflicts of interest. The research was funded by National Institutes of Health awards from the National Cancer Institute and Food and Drug Administration, as well as the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Co-authors included Alex C. Liber of the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Department of Oncology, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, D.C; Alyssa Crippen of the YSPH Department of Health Policy & Management; and Michael F. Pesko of the Department of Economics at the University of Missouri, Columbia. ysph.yale.edu/news-article/t…

A Failed Industry Experiment: The Overreliance on Nurse Practitioners in Health Care: conta.cc/4enbBGj

The NCGA kicks off the legislative short session tomorrow. Safe travels to all!

Amputees deserve more than “walking is good enough for you.” If someone tears an ACL, insurance typically covers the surgery and rehabilitation needed to restore their highest level of mobility—allowing them to run, work, and live fully again. Yet for people living with limb loss or difference, coverage often stops at basic walking. Amputees can't run with a "walking leg." Prosthetics that enable running, sports, or meaningful physical activity are frequently denied or severely limited. They are treated differently because they are small in number at only .6% of the population. This means they will always be underrepresented in policy conversations. Approximately 120,000 North Carolinians live with limb loss, their voices are too often overshadowed when insurance decisions reduce human potential to a line item on a spreadsheet. Imagine if it were your child, parent, spouse, or close friend facing these barriers. Would “basic mobility” feel sufficient? Physical activity is essential for both physical and mental health—benefits that should not be reserved for those with two biological legs. In North Carolina, we have an opportunity to lead with compassion and fairness. Reforming insurance regulations to ensure comprehensive prosthetic coverage—including activity-specific devices—would restore dignity, independence, and possibility for thousands of our neighbors. This April, during Limb Loss and Limb Difference Awareness Month, join us in raising awareness, supporting the resilience of this community, and advocating for change. deserve.#LimbLossAwareness #NorthCarolina #ProstheticAccess #ReagansLaw

From the FRED Blog: North Carolina led all states in fourth-quarter employment gains, adding 22,700 jobs. The largest declines were in Virginia (-17,400 jobs) and Washington, D.C. (-18,400 jobs) bit.ly/40pUHhR

Great to participate in the conversation on State Lines with @kellymccullen, Senator @mikewoodard @skydiving11 and @RaleighReporter! Thank you @dreakcorona! youtube.com/watch?v=d0Hru1…

Election season can be tough on everyone involved. We can't forget there are people and families attached to these issues! Thank you to those who sacrifice so much on a daily basis.

Congratulations!

Legislative Calendar Live Link ncleg.gov/LegislativeCal…

State Capitol Meetings Today: 10 a.m. | The Council of State will meet, Transportation Building, 1 S. Wilmington St. Meeting materials 12 p.m. | Governor's Advisory Council on Latino Affairs: Education & Skills Development Committee Meeting, 325 N. Salisbury St, Raleigh. 1 p.m. | Governor's Advisory Council on Latino Affairs: Economic Opportunity Committee Meeting, 325 N. Salisbury St, Raleigh. 12:30 p.m. | North Carolina Energy Policy Task Force, Event website: forms.office.com/g/7XMgFFQfdg 1:30 p.m. | NC Advisory Council on Cannabis, 901 Corporate Center Drive, Raleigh.

I agree with my colleague Senator Tim Moffitt— at a time when our priorities should be students and core needs, the escalating spending on college athletics has gone too far. ncpoliticalnews.com/news/time-to-r…

My office received a call from the White House that my request for an Emergency Declaration was approved. We are grateful for their partnership and quick response. Rest assured, at the state level, we are coordinating with officials at the local and federal levels to ensure we are doing everything we can to weather this storm and keep you safe.

Doctor Greg Murphy recently had brain surgery. He talks about his experience in this congressional hearing: youtu.be/6TSERk3j4ck

We look forward to hosting clients, old friends and colleagues for our open house reception in Q1 of 2026!

Great topic. There are always so many questions about this, and very few realize the lottery publishes a report every year that shows their revenue, expenses and profit. I read the report. Sales did, indeed, go up. I did note they went up in a new category (digital) and seemed to decrease the traditional business lines, like the scratch off games. Sales increased by about $1.1 B and the payouts to North Carolinians during this time period went up by about $1.2B. (some of that could be timing, rollovers or game design?) It will be interesting to measure these things next year, after another year of market maturation for digital. Comparing the revenue of the digital instants with scratch offs and other categories will be interesting to watch as this thing evolves. The lottery loses well over half of its revenue to expenses immediately. Around the country, the stated goal is to pay about 50-70% in prizes. Additionally, they pay the retailer 7% for selling the ticket. Overhead Expenses are limited to 3% of overall revenue (for lottery personnel expenses) and they can't spend more than 1% on advertising. These numbers do not reflect all expenses, but they do get you down to a 19% margin. Again, the numbers I share above do not include all of the expenses. According to Grok, National data shows an average payout of roughly 60% of gross revenue (ticket sales), with prizes totaling about two-thirds in recent years (e.g., $69 billion in prizes from $103 billion in sales in 2023). When it is Powerball and Megamillions (traditional draw games) driving sales, the payout is 50%. Different gaming lines offer different payouts. This is the equivalent of a group paying $1 billion in voluntary taxes for education. North Carolina taxpayers spend about $12.6 Billion per year on K-12 education.

@andrew_dunn @NCStateAuditor percentages shouldn't change - find the grift

Reading the new @NCStateAuditor report on the N.C. Education Lottery. Fascinating stuff. The percentage of revenue actually going to education has fallen from 23% to 16% in just two years. Despite revenue increasing by more than $1B year-over-year, the lottery actually sent LESS money to education this year. Instead, the prizes paid actually went up more than $1B. The state's new "digital instants" have led to a huge boost in lottery sales, but it is not translating to more education funding at all. #ncpol

Tuesday, Dec. 9 9 a.m. | Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Services, 643 LOB. 1 p.m. | Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Medicaid, 643 LOB. 1:30 p.m. | North Carolina Child Fatality Task Force, DHHS, 1915 Health Services Way, Raleigh, NC Wednesday, Dec. 10 9 a.m. | House: House Select Committee on Oversight and Reform, Auditorium LB.

TODAY...at the NCGA Sheriffs’ Education and Training Standards Commission meets - 8:30 a.m. Teaching Fellows Commission meets - 9 a.m. Family Law Advisory Commission meets - 9 a.m. Social Work Certification and Licensure Board meets - 9:30 a.m. State Health Plan Board of Trustees meets - 9:30 a.m. Pretrial Release Task Force meets - 9:30 a.m. 911 Board meets - 10 a.m. Financial Literacy Council meets - 10 a.m. Commission of Indian Affairs meets - 10 a.m.