July 10, 2012

Sequestration Update—We Need Your Help!

Recent issues of Capitol Connection have reported on the potentially devastating effects of sequestration, the across-the-board cuts to education and other federal programs set in motion by the congressional budget impasse last fall. Congress has still not acted to stop the cuts, and according to new information, the effect could be worse than previously thought. Educators need to tell lawmakers to stop sequestration now so the federal budget is not balanced on the backs of our children.

An updated analysis (PDF) of sequestration's effects released by the Center for American Progress concludes that the actual cuts to school districts' federal funding could be more than 11 percent, a significant increase over earlier forecasts of 8.4 percent. The estimated increase is related to the measure's timing, which is scheduled to take effect in January 2013, three months into the new fiscal year. Thus, the reductions required by sequestration will have to be squeezed from the nine remaining months of FY13, making the actual cuts a third larger than they would be if spread out over the entire year.

Another recent report by the Bipartisan Policy Center estimates that the cuts could cause up to 1 million job losses over a two-year period. It also concludes that although the cuts are scheduled to go into effect in January, the economic effects will be felt well beforehand.

As these reports demonstrate, the timeline for finding a responsible solution to this crisis is shrinking while the consequences of inaction continue to grow. Your federal legislators are the only ones who can repeal the scheduled across-the-board cuts. Please contact them today and urge them to take action.

Use and share the resources that ASCD has created to tell Congress to stop sequestration now!

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