Uncertainty For Head Start and Non-Profits Ahead Of 'Sequester'

As political leaders in Washington, D.C. appear unlikely to avert a Friday deadline to avoid "sequestration", a process that will bring automatic federal buget cuts, education leaders, non-profit service providers and others are left to play a waiting game to truly see the impact.

In some cases, that impact is very clear. In others, it will take time.

According to a variety of sources, while Social Security payments won't change because of the cuts, customer service could suffer and there is a possibility of furloughs and office closures.

For Jewish Family & Children's Services, there isn't an immediate concern about a Friday deadline. What comes next is what worries Executive Director Louis Albert.

“They will have to replace them with something,” Albert said of Congress as lawmakers consider the possibiity of new cuts to shore up areas in this first round that could be restored later.

JFCS receives Medicare and Medicaid funding to provide mental health services. It also relies on USDA grants to get acccess to 30,000 pounds of USDA surplus food every month for the Harvey Kornblum Jewish Food Pantry.

And then there's a question that faces all non-profits who help those in need--what happens if more people are in need as a result of the sequester process? "Anything the federal government does that could impact employment could drive people" to the non-profit sector for help.

HEAD START

According to the White House, roughly 1,200 Missouri children would lose access to Head Start and Early Head Start programs. That's really the extent of what local programs know at this point, according to Stacy Johnson, Assistant Program Director at the YWCA told Patch Tuesday.

Johnson said she expects the impact to be felt statewide, including at the YWCA, Grace Hill Settlement House, and Youth In Need in St. Charles County.