* As the threat of automatic federal budget cuts known as “sequestration” looms, the White House is distributing impact numbers for each state.
From Crain’s…
llinois would lose more than $58 million in federal education funding this year, about 14,000 of the state’s civilian Defense Department workers face furloughs and O’Hare International Airport could see customs delays of four hours or more unless Congress acts soon to avert mandatory budget cuts, according to the White House.
As part of its public relations effort to turn up the heat on Republicans in a standoff with President Barack Obama over taxes and spending, the White House on Sunday spelled out dire state-by-state impact of spending cuts now mandated by law to start March 1.
From a military air show scheduled for Rockford to Head Start services for about 2,700 children across the state, Illinois will see a wide array of fallout if almost all federal spending goes on the chopping block.
Last year’s “fiscal cliff” negotiations resulted in a two-month delay of the broad spending cuts, known as sequestration, but the two sides appear to be further apart than ever in reaching a compromise. Barring a last-minute breakthrough this week, Illinois and other states will see a 13 percent cut in defense programs and a 9 percent cut in civilian programs for the remainder of the federal fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30.
After agreeing last year to end payroll tax breaks and let income tax rates rise for the richest Americans, Republicans are refusing to consider White House demands for a combination of tax hikes and spending cuts to reduce the deficit.
Other than the large number of furloughs, these don’t appear to be absolutely wrenching cuts, but Illinois just doesn’t have the money to patch any of these holes. More on that later today.
* The White House list…
* Teachers and Schools: Illinois will lose approximately $33.4 million in funding for primary and secondary education, putting around 460 teacher and aide jobs at risk. In addition about 39,000 fewer students would be served and approximately 120 fewer schools would receive funding.
o Education for Children with Disabilities: In addition, Illinois will lose approximately $24.7 million in funds for about 300 teachers, aides, and staff who help children with disabilities.
* Work-Study Jobs: Around 3,280 fewer low income students in Illinois would receive aid to help them finance the costs of college and around 2,650 fewer students will get work-study jobs that help them pay for college.
* Head Start: Head Start and Early Head Start services would be eliminated for approximately 2,700 children in Illinois, reducing access to critical early education.
* Protections for Clean Air and Clean Water: Illinois would lose about $6.4 million in environmental funding to ensure clean water and air quality, as well as prevent pollution from pesticides and hazardous waste. In addition, Illinois could lose another $974,000 in grants for fish and wildlife protection.
* Military Readiness: In Illinois, approximately 14,000 civilian Department of Defense employees would be furloughed, reducing gross pay by around $83.5 million in total.
o Army: Base operation funding would be cut by about $19 million in Illinois.
o Air Force: Funding for Air Force operations in Illinois would be cut by about $7 million.
o Navy: Four planned Naval Station Great Lakes demolition projects ($2 million) could be canceled and a scheduled Blue Angels show in Rockford could be canceled.
* Law Enforcement and Public Safety Funds for Crime Prevention and Prosecution: Illinois will lose about $587,000 in Justice Assistance Grants that support law enforcement, prosecution and courts, crime prevention and education, corrections and community corrections, drug treatment and enforcement, and crime victim and witness initiatives.
* Job Search Assistance to Help those in Illinois find Employment and Training: Illinois will lose about $1.4 million in funding for job search assistance, referral, and placement, meaning around 50,780 fewer people will get the help and skills they need to find employment.
* Child Care: Up to 1,100 disadvantaged and vulnerable children could lose access to child care, which is also essential for working parents to hold down a job.
* Vaccines for Children: In Illinois around 5,230 fewer children will receive vaccines for diseases such as measles, mumps, rubella, tetanus, whooping cough, influenza, and Hepatitis B due to reduced funding for vaccinations of about $357,000.
* Public Health: Illinois will lose approximately $968,000 in funds to help upgrade its ability to respond to public health threats including infectious diseases, natural disasters, and biological, chemical, nuclear, and radiological events. In addition, Illinois will lose about $3.5 million in grants to help prevent and treat substance abuse, resulting in around 3,900 fewer admissions to substance abuse programs. And the Illinois State Department of Public Health will lose about $186,000 resulting in around 4,600 fewer HIV tests.
* STOP Violence Against Women Program: Illinois could lose up to $273,000 in funds that provide services to victims of domestic violence, resulting in up to 1,000 fewer victims being served.
* Nutrition Assistance for Seniors: Illinois would lose approximately $764,000 in funds that provide meals for seniors.
Discuss.
- Angry Republican - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 8:56 am:
I am betting Republican’s will fold like a lawn chair, just like they did on every other head to head battle with Obama. There won’t be one dime of spending cuts.
- Waffle Fries - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 8:59 am:
I’m getting the impression the sequester is bad for everyone, which was pretty much the point.
Its only 02/25 so its probably not Congressional crisis time quite yet. Its all a big fun game with people’s jobs and families anyway…
- DisgustedOne - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:08 am:
The seas will part and miracles will happen on the 28th. The terror and threats seem to be the usual chain of events these days before a resolution.
- wordslinger - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:10 am:
Not that surprising. Illinois has long been one of the northern states that supports other states’ dependence on federal spending.
- WazUp - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:11 am:
Really? Obviously the rest of the nation hasn’t seen ‘Quinnam Style’.
Straight out of the Govs play book, yell fire fire and then run to the rescue to put it out.
- Frenchie Mendoza - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:12 am:
Nice!
The potential for this — plus the potential for a 30,000+ union member work stoppage — will make for a winning election strategy for Quinn.
Yes, I realize Quinn has nothing to do with the sequester, but he certainly has something to do with the AFSCME strike — and I can only imagine the weirdness that will occur when these things hit at essentially the same time — especially with the reduced VAWA and JAG spending.
Nice work, Quinn. Good luck on that re-election. Yeah, winning strategy all right.
- Cincinnatus - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:14 am:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmzuRXLzqKk
- Oswego Willy - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:22 am:
To follow - Cincinnatus - …
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5QGkOGZubQ
- Yossarian Lives - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:22 am:
The WH list’s lack of specificity is deceptive. What does it mean that “39,000 fewer students would be served” and “120 fewer schools would receive funding”? Obviously they mean federal dollars, like Title I funds; this doesn’t mean 120 schools will close their doors on Friday. Folks familiar with government know that; the average parent might not. I generally support the president, but I have to agree with his critics that he’s engaging in scare tactics. Not that his critics are proposing constructive solutions either. What a mess.
- OneMan - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:26 am:
Following OW
http://youtu.be/0f6l1QljpMo
- Oswego Willy - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:32 am:
===Other than the large number of furloughs, these don’t appear to be absolutely wrenching cuts, but Illinois just doesn’t have the money to patch any of these holes.====
And …
- wordslinger -
===Not that surprising. Illinois has long been one of the northern states that supports other states’ dependence on federal spending.===
Great points, and my takeaway from this post.
The cuts stink!
They are not back breaking.
Illinois can not cover the cuts on its own. Illinois gives far more than it gets.
Thanks.
- Rich Miller - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:43 am:
Either tone yourselves down or find yourselves deleted.
- Publius - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:50 am:
The cuts are a tiny per cent of the federal budget—in fact they add up this year to about the amount that was added for hurricane sandy—zero sum game. We have fought two wars for a decade and spent hundreds of billions of dollars for a questionable return. It is time to ratchet back our huge “defense” budget.
- shore - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:04 am:
This is the start of a 6 week period of spring break/holidays/march madness other assorted stuff where a lot of folks are tuned out and not focused on things which will make it hard for the White House to use this.
I don’t think it was well written either and I support funding for some of it.
“$968,000 in funds to help upgrade its ability to respond to public health threats including infectious diseases, natural disasters, and biological, chemical, nuclear, and radiological events.”-we’ve had 12 years of heavy funding for anytown usa to get top quality stuff in the event al qaeda decides to bring nerve gas to your local arbys, I don’t think the loss of these funds will crush anyone.
“scheduled Blue Angels show in Rockford could be canceled.”-you can just stay home and watch top gun.
“In addition, Illinois could lose another $974,000 in grants for fish and wildlife protection.”-It’s actually a pretty good time to CARP about this.
“Head Start and Early Head Start services would be eliminated for approximately 2,700 children in Illinois, reducing access to critical early education.”-just going to have rely on k-12 like they did for the first 200 years of american history.
- Huh? - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:05 am:
And congress wonders why it is less popular than root canals, NFL replacement referees, head lice, the rock band Nickelback, colonoscopies, carnies, traffic jams, cockroaches, Donald Trump, France, Genghis Khan, used-car salesmen and Brussel sprouts.
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatches/globalpost-blogs/weird-wide-web/whats-less-popular-cockroaches-and-head-lice-congress
- Cook County Commoner - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:15 am:
Don’t worry. If sequestration occurs, just shift the federal education spending loss over to the property tax along with the suburban teacher pensions. Illinois is is the most reliant of all the states on funding education on the backs of homeowners. So it may as well secure its standing. Still, one wonders when escalating property taxes will break Illinois’ home market. Luckily, homeowners are so busy working to pay the mortgage and taxes, they don’t seem to notice the GA targeting them.
- Joe75 - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:15 am:
The tone is real the threat is that government jobs were already slimmed don. Law enforcement, DOD, ect took hits to dangerous levels now no pay? Oh and no unemployment benefits…nope you just take the time off and starve your family. Meanwhile services and security will fail and everyone else feels the collapse. Disastrous. But hey the GOP got their pay raise, tax cuts for the wealthy, and never received one day off to worry about their families.
- Burning Down da House - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:17 am:
I don’t see anything there that is necessary and vital, just a whole lot of expensive government bloat.
- Jack - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:23 am:
These cuts don’t seem that bad to me compared to the 17% I had to pay for fed income tax for 2012. I don’t think I use any of the services listed.
- Wumpus - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:23 am:
How much for wolf repellant? Or at least juvenille sentencing for the boy who keeps crying it/.
- Ann - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:26 am:
If anything, this is underplaying the disaster in Illinois. The only explicit lay-offs mentioned are the 14,000 civilian employees of the DOD, but virtually all those other funds are being spent mostly on personnel as well. The loss in job placement funds, for example, doesn’t just mean that people have to look for jobs on their own, it means that all those job coaches and counselors people being supported by the $1.4 million dollar grant (my guess is that most of them work for IDES)will be unemployed and competing with their former clients. Same thing at DNR, domestic violence agencies, etc. I strongly doubt if the state has the resources to continue these jobs without the federal dollars and I know the non-profit sector does not.
- Captain Illini - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:27 am:
I know we’re talking about big numbers, but it’s all relative. 85 billion is .85% of just this years deficit! You mean we can’t find not even one percent in cuts to diminish the operating deficit???
- 47th Ward - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:28 am:
This is just the first of several budget battles ahead. The sequester will be followed by the expiration of the continuing resolution in late March, which if unresolved, will force a shut down of the federal governmant. After that, the debt ceiling is reached sometime in April and if history is any guide, the knucklehead caucus of the House GOP will force a showdown over that, with dire consequences for the global economy.
It’s another game of chicken folks. Fasten your seat belts and brace for impact.
- MrJM - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:29 am:
“I don’t see anything there that is necessary and vital, just a whole lot of expensive government bloat.”
Ladies and gentlemen, I present: The Problem.
– MrJM
- steve schnorf - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:34 am:
I think I’m OK with sequestration going ahead. Both parties set up this deal, both parties failed to get the job done in the interim, and this is exactly the outcome they set up to take place if they failed. OK.
- Plutocrat03 - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 10:41 am:
It just does not pass the smell test . To consider that all this armageddon will occur with a cut of less than 2% is ludicrous.
Individuals and private industry have absorbed those kinds of changes and moved on with little or no change. In fact, individuals have just had to absorb a 2% increase in taxes….. certainly was not the end of the world for them was it?
- wordslinger - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 11:04 am:
If it happens, the sequester won’t last long. The loudest deficit hawks generally come from states most dependent on federal spending.
- Guardsman - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 11:09 am:
Ann, the 14,000 DOD personnel aren’t facing layoff, they are facing furlough. There is a difference. They will still show up for work the next day, but one of the first things they will do is let their supervisors know which day in the next two weeks they will have to take off as a furlough day.
Furloughs are nothing new; State employees had to take them a few years ago. Everyone kept their job, they just took a 10% pay cut. Which may get restored. If so, they get a vacation day every two weeks.
- soccermom - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 11:51 am:
Less popular than Nickelback? Now that’s bad…
- Anonymous-99 - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 12:16 pm:
== But hey the GOP got their pay raise, tax cuts for the wealthy, and never received one day off to worry about their families. ==
Hasn’t the president been talking about a “balanced approach of tax increases and spending reductions” for about 2 years now?
Didn’t the GOP just go along with a tax increase on the wealthy? Uh… yes, they did. It was values aqt approximately $600 over 10 years, or about $60B per year.
When do the Democrats deliver the “spending reductions” to provide that balance?
That “balance” would be provided by a paltry $60B per year in actual cuts, mind you, not the “reduction in growth” fraudulent accounting tricks…
That would provide a total of only $120B per year reduction in the roughly $1,600B deficit, nowhere NEAR enough, but a start.
It is the Democrats’ turn to build trust.
- siriusly - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 12:34 pm:
This continual brinkmanship has seriously negative impacts on consumer confidence and the economy in general. Uncertainty leads the headlines. President and the Congress both bear the blame for the economic responses to these artificial crises.
- wordslinger - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 12:41 pm:
–This continual brinkmanship has seriously negative impacts on consumer confidence and the economy in general.–
You think so? You can only go the well with this stuff so many times before people tune out.
The stock market doesn’t care. If you have a job and your mortgage isn’t underwater you’re still spending.
Housing is still the Big Kahuna. It’s crash got us here and its recovery will get us out.
- Robo - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 1:12 pm:
I get the sense that the GOP will ride this one out. Puts pressure on the Administration and puts pressure on the Speaker’s nay-saying faction.
- Responsa - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 1:22 pm:
I would have preferred that the president and congress work toward actual reform and targeted spending cuts but I can live with the sequestration. It’s barely even a beginning of what needs to happen to get our nation’s house in order. In fact, it’s mostly smoke and mirrors served with a side of fog for those who aren’t paying much attention.
- LisleMike - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 1:35 pm:
Like many here, I, too, can live w/ sequestration.The hyperbole of this will happen and we will cut this, reminds me of the school boards that always threaten to cut football to get action on needed revenues. When received, Music, art, PE and other items take the hit, which would have excited noone if they were mentioned in the first place. Others were/are right. Both parties agreed, both parties sat on their hands. I would also add that Executive leadership is missing. Legislative branch governsm (or is supposed to), Executive branch leads…(or doesn’t in this case) They made the mess and want to hand it off to us with promised doom and dire events if we don’t push to get action. Baloney!
- Downstate Illinois - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 1:56 pm:
It’s amazing that an action that doesn’t actually cut real federal spending would cause this much disruption. Federal spending will still go up this year even with sequestration.
- Downstate - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 2:03 pm:
Wow! A 2% reducation is catastrophic? I don’t remember those same naysayers being so hysterical over the same increase in state income tax here in Illinois?
So individual Illinois taxpayers can afford to cut back their lifestyle by 2%, but the federal government cannot?
- Grandson of Man - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 2:37 pm:
The thing that is bothersome to me is that this crisis could have been avoided. People in Illinois or any other state don’t need to be put in this kind of risk. The numbers represent people and jobs. Obama is now trying to get governors to put pressure on Congress.
I could be wrong, but I believe this fiasco started in 2011 when there was a “Grand Bargain” in the works between the president and Speaker Boehner, which was for $4 trillion in debt reduction. Obama was only asking for closure of corporate tax loopholes, and the deal was something like 3:1 cuts to revenue. The deal was stopped because of Tea Party Republicans in the House, who wouldn’t give anything on taxes. David Brooks, the conservative pundit, ridiculed the GOP for not accepting such a great deal.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/05/opinion/05brooks.html
We are at the same place again. Republicans don’t want to compromise on closing tax loopholes. Americans overwhelmingly support a balanced debt solution involving spending cuts and revenue (76% in the latest poll). Plus, the GOP is not very popular right now. Retreating into another shell of protecting only the wealthy seems like a terrible idea. Wouldn’t closing tax loopholes for corporations that are making record profits be a great idea for Republicans to become more popular again?
- OpenlineBlog - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 2:41 pm:
Illinois has plenty of money. On March 4th, they are scheduled to dump over $10 million in Aurora as part of a “grant” for a “new” traditional old library model that has all kinds of contracts that are “coincidentally” connected to campaign contributors of the mayor.
- Downstate - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 2:42 pm:
Democrats have never met an entitlement that they didn’t want to expand. How do we bring necessary “responsibility” to government spending? Certainly not by expanding it.
American Government is fat and bloated. Democrats are the only ones that believe the path to trimming government is feeding it even more!
Put them on a diet!!!
- Elo Kiddies - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 3:32 pm:
WaPo is reporting that Illinois will face the second largest loss of federal money, measured as a percentage of the state budget, in the country. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/02/25/the-states-most-and-least-affected-by-the-sequester-in-one-chart/?tid=pm_pop
- RMD - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 3:36 pm:
Unfortunately, this is the Illinois future. Years of irresponsible spending and allocation practices at both federal and state levels has lead us to this. Let’s accept the federal pain and brace for more as the state works through their financial black hole. When we finally solve the pension problem, which will favor public employees, these federal cuts will look awfully small in comparison.
- late to the party - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 3:54 pm:
==When do the Democrats deliver the “spending reductions” to provide that balance?==
The administration has already cut over $1 trillion. Maybe it’s not the balance you are looking for, but I think you should at least acknowledge it instead of pretending in never happened.
- Wumpus - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 3:56 pm:
Okay, I was kicked off of Lady Wumpus’s medical coverage due to The Affordable Healthcare act. My state income taxes went up a couple years ago and the federal income taxes went back up this year. My property taxes continue to skyrocket. What about my own personal sequestration?
- Property owner - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 4:00 pm:
I agree with the comments that in the big picture the amount of the cuts is not that large for the country as a whole.
But remember that the federal government is, has been for years, running in the red for years. This round of spending cuts will decrease the borrowing needs of the federal government. This means that tens of thousands of capital starved small business owners will have a chance to take out a loan. I think that this opening of the capital markets, no matter how small, will be good for the economey.
- just sayin' - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 4:02 pm:
Funny, the Obama administration screams about a 2% cut to government spending but continues to keep hiring new employees!
Just go to jobs.gov and get your federally funded (and heavily borrowed) new job!!
- Grandson of Man - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 4:21 pm:
“Funny, the Obama administration screams about a 2% cut to government spending but continues to keep hiring new employees!”
This is untrue.
http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2012/07/06/federal-job-cuts-outpacing-state-local-reductions/
- wordslinger - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 6:08 pm:
–This round of spending cuts will decrease the borrowing needs of the federal government. This means that tens of thousands of capital starved small business owners will have a chance to take out a loan–
Yeah, you should have gone to the second day of Econ 101.
Are you kidding me? There’s a body of scholarship on this.
What are interest rates today?
What is inflation today?
What is the supply of federal debt demand to international supply?
What is the percentage of federal spending to the GDP?
How’s the stock market doing?
The big problem: underwater mortgages. Folks used to think they had money in their homes, they spent.
When their homes are worth less than their mortgages, they don’t spend.
Corporations don’t create jobs; consumers do. If they ain’t buying, you ain’t selling.
High? Low?
- Small Town Liberal - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 6:15 pm:
- Years of irresponsible spending and allocation practices at both federal and state levels has lead us to this. -
Right, I’m sure it had nothing to do with the financial industry driving the economy into the ditch.
- just sayin' - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 6:15 pm:
Check the website folks, it’s all true. Here’s a sample of the “essential” jobs the Federal government is seeking to fill right now:
Tax Exempt Bond Agent
Multiple Student Internships
Pyschologist
INDIVIDUAL TAXPAYER ADVISORY SPECIALIST
Animal Health Technician
Over 8 pages of these jobs, yet they can’t cut 2% !?!?
- VanillaMan - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 6:28 pm:
The President is completely ridiculous. Sequestration is no disaster when it impacts such a miniscule percentage.
- wishbone - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 6:31 pm:
“The cuts are a tiny per cent of the federal budget…”
Amen, this is the typical “close the Washington monument” response of government to any small percentage cut. Why can’t the high priced senior agency managers handle this cut in a way that minimizes service cuts? They can, and should be forced to. Across the board cuts work if managers are willing to do their jobs and manage. Oh, the state too.
- Just The Way It Is One - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 7:05 pm:
Super-duper! That’s a sickening list to review, but thank you, RM and Crain’s, for revealing it. And that’s $58 million more in Education funds Illinois needs every penny of, just for one! Yet again, Congress needs to bite the bullet and work this thing out–too many of those dollars listed above is critical to the services of many needy folks here in the Prairie State. How does it always seem to come to this, and until we’re on the brink of figuratively falling off a cliff or something, Congress just carries on with their adolescent bickering, and then we sit here shaking our heads as they all start running around at the last second do something inadequate overall…we need the days of Ronald Reagan, Tip O’Neill and Howard Baker kickin’ back in the Oval Office and truly, at least TRYING, to work things out in the best interest of ALL Americans!!!
- Holdingontomywallet - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 7:11 pm:
For those of you who are interested, Peggy Noonan has an entertaining article on this in the Wall Street Journal, “Government by Freakout”.
http://online.wsj.com/article/declarations.html
- Arthur Andersen - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 7:49 pm:
Isn’t Fed Education money handed out in advance? AA thinks it is. Unless I’m wrong, these dire cuts will take place in the NEXT school year.
And four hour customs delays? So what? How long are they now? Take some of the “Thousands Standing Around” TSA Screeners and move them to Customs, Janet.
- palatine - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 8:37 pm:
let it happen
- Grandson of Man - Monday, Feb 25, 13 @ 9:30 pm:
It’s late for this thread, and the proverbial innkeeper has swept the tavern floor and closed up shop, so to speak, but I would still like to make a correction. I dug a bit deeper into the polling result I posted earlier. A vast majority of Americans in a recent poll do want a combination of spending cuts and revenue increases(76%), but a large majority of that 76% wants more spending cuts than tax increases.
I said the result was balanced, but that is not really the case. I would like to set that straight.