Sequester Will Slash $3 Billion From Sandy Aid Package

The government giveth… crippling partisan bickering taketh away.

As across-the-board government cuts known as the “sequester” kick in this week, many New Yorkers are facing the reality that the aid sent to them in the form of the $60 billion Sandy package will be reduced by $3 billion, according to a report by Fox 5.

While it’s hard to tell exactly which parts of the Sandy aid package will get the ax, the changes will be felt in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, the immediate impact of the sequester will be felt in the form of flight delays as thousands of TSA screeners and air traffic controllers will be furloughed – a temporary, unpaid leave – leading to slower and reduced service.

Councilman Domenic Recchia, chair of the powerful Finance Committee charged with developing the city’s budget, also weighed in on the negative effects the sequester will wreck on jobs and the unemployment rate in New York City in a press release:

Nationally, it’s been estimated that the sequestration could cost as many as 750,000 jobs and anywhere ranging from a .25 point increase to a 1.5 point increase in the national unemployment rate. Here, in New York City, a spike in unemployment is of significant concern because our rate of unemployment, at 8.8%, is already higher than the national average, 7.9%. For the past five years, we’ve fought hard to overcome a sluggish economy, and now this threat to economic growth is a devastating step in the wrong direction.

The longer the across the board cuts continue, what will be cut and how it will affect the recovery will become more clear.