Federal Sequester Not Likely to Affect Cheshire Much

The federal Sequester - what has been described as devestating cuts that are slated to go into effect on Friday in the absense of an act of Congress - won't likely affect Cheshire too much, officials said Tuesday.

"We are not 100 percent sure of the full impact," Supt. of Schools Gregory Florio said, "but I don't think it will be substantial because we don't rely alot on federal money."

The Cheshire Board of Education could feel some pain, but it won't be as significant as other districts that do rely on federal funds, he said.

"I could see a reduction of federal grants," Florio said. "We receive special education funding and Title I funding but I haven't seen any dollar amounts yet, just global numbers for the state.

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"I don't expect it to be significant," he said.

Town Manager Michael Milone couldn't be reached for comment Tuesday but officials said Cheshire Town Hall too doesn't expect to see any significant impacts from the looming cuts.

The cuts, which total $85 billion this year and could top a trillion dollars in the next decade, will automatically go into effect Friday, March 1 unless Congress takes action to stop them.

According to the White House, in Connecticut the cuts would mean $8.7 million loss of education funds and $6.3 million in special education money, as well as cuts to services such as the Head Start program, law enforcement and children's vaccinations.

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