What started out as a parliamentary power play regarding the budget has turned into a real constitutional quandary for legislators.

The Senate budgets were put in limbo last week when Republican Lt. Governor Bill Bolling ruled that a four-fifths majority was necessary to pass them because the state Constitution requires such a vote on legislation that changes the distribution of lottery proceeds.

When looking into it further, a legislative agency found a bigger problem: the way lottery proceeds are doled out to cities, counties and towns violates the state Constitution.

It requires the money be sent to the localities from a lottery proceeds fund. The problem is that the money goes from that fund to the state's general fund and then is distributed to the localities.