Sequester? Deadline Looms, Cuts Could Hit MN Education Programs

If a deal isn’t struck by Friday between President Obama and Congress, a sequester will begin that will auto-start a series of mandated federal budget cuts that would quickly be felt across the Midwest.

Here’s a sample of what’s at risk:

• Hundreds of teaching jobs.
• Thousands of children dropped from early childhood education.
• Elimination of work-study jobs that support thousands of low-income college students getting a degree.
• The loss of childcare for thousands of disadvantaged kids.
• Furloughs for thousands of civilian Defense Department employees.

U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison, a DFLer representing Minnesota's Fifth District (including St. Louis Park), gave this statement to the Star Tribune earlier this month: 

“The Republicans have controlled the House of Representatives for 766 days and they’ve yet to make creating jobs a priority. Now House Republicans are letting across the broad spending cuts hit America’s working families hard. If these damaging spending cuts take effect on March 1st, the sequester will eliminate over 600,000 jobs this year—including air traffic controllers, food safety inspectors, police officers and teachers. These folks protect our communities and assure the safety of our food.  Republicans in Congress would rather slash Medicare or fire teachers than cut even a penny from subsidies to Big Oil or tax loopholes for millionaires. I am working for investments that will put people back to work and invest in America’s families. The Progressive Caucus recently introduced The Balancing Act, which would eliminate the sequester, save those 600,000 jobs and create another million. If we aren’t talking about creating jobs, we aren’t doing our job.”

The scope of the sequester, a plan to trim the budget by $1.2 trillion over the next decade, was mandated as part of a 2011 law. If a deal isn’t reached by Friday, $85 billion in cuts will sweep across federal agencies between March and September. The sequester includes cuts of 8 percent to the Pentagon budget and 5 percent to domestic agency operating budgets.

Nationally, here’s what a Time report suggests will happen if the sequester begins:

Picture air travel snarled. Meat inspections curtailed. National security imperiled. Seventy thousand children booted from Head Start programs, 10,000 teaching jobs jeopardized, disability payments delayed, aid withheld from needy Americans and foreign governments perched on the brink of chaos. Hundreds of thousands of jobs could be lost, and the fragile economy knocked into a tailspin.

The White House released fact sheets for each state detailing the impact of the sequester.

Teachers and Schools:

• Minnesota will lose about $7 million in funding for primary and secondary education, putting around 100 teacher and aide jobs at risk. In addition about 8,000 fewer students would be served and approximately 40 fewer schools would receive funding.

Education for Children with Disabilities:

• Minnesota will lose approximately $9.2 million in funds for about 110 teachers, aides, and staff who help children with disabilities.

Work-Study Jobs:

• Minnesota: Around 920 fewer low income students in Minnesota would receive aid to help them finance the costs of college and around 500 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 700 children in Minnesota, reducing access to critical early education.

Protections for Clean Air and Clean Water:

• Minnesota would lose about $3 million in environmental funding to ensure clean water and air quality, as well as prevent pollution from pesticides and hazardous waste. In addition, Minnesota could lose another $1.6 million in grants for fish and wildlife protection.

Military Readiness: 

 In Minnesota, approximately 2,000 civilian Department of Defense employees would be furloughed, reducing gross pay by around $12.5 million in total.

• Army: Base operation funding would be cut by about $2.5 million in Minnesota.
• Navy: A scheduled Blue Angels show in St. Cloud could be canceled.

Law Enforcement and Public Safety Funds for Crime Prevention and Prosecution:

• Minnesota will lose about $201,000 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:

• Minnesota will lose about $689,000 in funding for job search assistance, referral, and placement, meaning around 23,270 fewer people will get the help and skills they need to find employment.

Child Care:

• Minnesota: Up to 500 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 Minnesota about 2,360 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 $161,000.

Public Health:

• Minnesota will lose approximately $507,000 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, Minnesota will lose about $1.2 million in grants to help prevent and treat substance abuse, resulting in around 1,700 fewer admissions to substance abuse programs. And the Minnesota Department of Health will lose about $127,000 resulting in around 3,200 fewer HIV tests.

STOP Violence Against Women Program:

• Minnesota could lose up to $113,000 in funds that provide services to victims of domestic violence, resulting in up to 400 fewer victims being served.

Nutrition Assistance for Seniors:

• Minnesota would lose approximately $845,000 in funds that provide meals for seniors.

Follow us on Twitter  |  Like us on Facebook  |  Sign up for our daily newsletter