Gerlach in fact reports to Gov. Mike Easley, and this week, with talks on the budget urgent and a key deadline close, he will be pacing the halls, pushing Easley's priorities, helping shape the numbers as lawmakers try to make a deal.

Gerlach is Easley's main guy at the legislature. Easley himself will contact legislators directly only occasionally.

"Gov. Easley? Who's that?" joked Rep. Paul Stam, the Republican leader in the House. "You could go ahead and say Gerlach is the governor."

Gerlach, 40, is in an especially crucial role these days as Easley's time in office runs out. Easley, a Democrat, has 18 months left in his second term. Many of the governor's biggest ideas require funding in the budget -- and this year and next are Easley's last chances.

The new fiscal year begins Sunday (the day a new budget is supposed to be in place), but Easley and legislators are at odds on major points:

* Easley wants to keep sales and income tax increases from 2001 on the books, for example, but the Senate is pushing to eliminate them.

* Easley wants to spend heavily on education efforts, including an online initiative for high schoolers and a new $50 million scholarship program that he promises will help needy students graduate from college debt-free. Legislators haven't been as enthusiastic.

* Easley wants to revamp one of his pet projects -- the lottery -- to boost prizes and the programs that lottery money supports. But lawmakers want to hold off changes.

Gerlach is leading the negotiating for Easley, but it's not from a position of entire strength. If the House and Senate agree on a budget, Easley's role is reduced to approving it or vetoing it. In the unlikely event of a veto, enough lawmakers could still override it.

Shuttling among offices one day last week, Gerlach paused in a hallway at the state government complex. He acknowledged there are a lot of things the sides can't agree on -- "just yet."

Asked whether he would need to give in on major points, he said no.

"We can't give up," he said. "I don't give up. The governor doesn't give up."

Effective, expert

And so Gerlach's job is to ensure that Easley can live with most of what is included in the budget that passes both chambers.

Gerlach has been ranked in annual surveys as one of the most effective lobbyists in Raleigh, a showing that reflects his boss, but also his methods.

"A different man with a different personality would be way less successful as the governor's emissary," said Sen. David Hoyle, a Gaston County Democrat. "When Dan gets it down to the specifics, the governor ends up winning a lot because of it."

Gerlach is known for a dry humor and a self-deprecating wit. He calls people "commander" and "lieutenant," and is an admitted Star Trek geek. To Gerlach, a memo isn't a memo. It's a "magnum opus" or -- to denote gravity and authority -- a "basso profundo."

Last week, in the midst of a budget meeting, lawmakers broke out in song on Gerlach's 40th birthday. Gerlach seized the moment. He shut his eyes and made a wish, then opened them. "Darn," he said. "You're all still here."

He's also known for providing accurate numbers in a place where having reliable information is like owning a water spigot in a desert.

Gerlach is an expert on the state budget and tax structure. But he rarely carries a piece of paper -- his brain seems to hold it all. Gerlach can quickly summon numbers on a vast array of programs and initiatives, from Medicaid to building construction plans.

"If Dan says it, you can pretty well put it in the bank," said Mike Wilkins, a senior policy advisor to Speaker Joe Hackney.

At times, Gerlach is in the room as key House and Senate budget writers negotiate. More often, he is waiting nearby, available for consultation.

Easley and Gerlach talk by phone a dozen times a day normally, peaking at 20 or more in weeks such as this one when the budget is being decided.

Gerlach has been with Easley since late 2001, when the governor hired him from a left-leaning Raleigh nonprofit.

Gerlach had been a major voice in opposition to a lottery, and his move to work for the pro-lottery Easley raised eyebrows at the time. Gerlach eventually argued for the lottery.

Gerlach is unapologetic about his switch, saying that as the state budget became harder to balance and surrounding states added lotteries, it made sense for North Carolina to offer gambling.

After the lottery passed, Gerlach was a key figure in getting it under way. He helped secure a job, for example, for an SBI forensic document examiner as the lottery's first director of security. The man, Jerry Carter, once was on the security detail for Easley at the Attorney General's Office.

Gerlach said he didn't hear directly from Easley about getting Carter the job, but said others in the administration knew Carter and said he would be good for it.

Not all smooth

Gerlach hasn't avoided controversy. He was a main architect of the deal to spend millions in incentives to lure a Dell computer plant to the Triad in 2004. Gerlach defended the deal against heavy criticism.

In an interview recently, Easley mentioned that Gerlach caused him to push a plan in 2005 to raise taxes on candy, movie tickets and other consumer items. The governor backed off within weeks.

"He fouled me up on candy," Easley said, recalling a drumbeat of coverage in the media against the plan. "It didn't say Gerlach every day on that. It said Easley every day."

Still, Easley said Gerlach is "brilliant" -- and he can't get a budget without him.

"He's one of those unique people who can do the big picture," Easley said, "but can also get down in the weeds and work on the details."

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