The Obama administration just took its first official crack at estimating the effects of sequestration on more than 1,200 budget accounts across the entire federal government. One thing is immediately apparent — the impact would be widespread and severe. Essentially no corner of the government would be left untouched by the cuts, which would amount to 8.2 percent for non-defense discretionary spending, and 9.4 percent for defense spending.
Federal Times would like to hear from you about what kinds of preparations your office is making in case sequestration does happen. Are you and your colleagues starting to plan for sequestration now that the White House’s guidance is out? Are you getting ready for hiring freezes or furloughs? Or preparing for delays to projects? Will contracts be canceled, reduced or delayed?
And most importantly, are you looking at these cuts as temporary? Or do you fear these are the first rumblings of a new, austere budget reality?
E-mail me at slosey@federaltimes.com if you’d like to share your thoughts. If you’d like to talk anonymously, that’s fine.
3 Comments
My agency is burying their collective heads in a manner that requires their anatomy be modified with a glass belly button to see what’s really going on.
Not that it matters as any plan will surely require significant changes once the effects of sequestration are known.
Personally, I am planning for being furloughed for at least 24 days next year, with the likely outcome of 2 days per month.
I hope I can take the whole 24 days off at once so I can go have a nice vacation where I am legally prohibited from using my government issued laptop and crackberry. If this occurs, I will use part of the vacation to find a better paying job in the private sector, which, given the number of offers I get reqularly shouldn’t prove too hard.
My future is looking brighter already!
Just got told yesterday that the department will furlough everyone (17) within the next nine months….. Thanks Congress… You don’t really care about the economy nor our families….
I asked my Division Chief of Staff about our plans last week. The Division’s leadership is “aware” of the potential for sequestration. No plans exist to deal with it, and no planning process has been discussed nor is any under consideration.