Latest southern Colorado news, weather and sports from FOX21 News

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- As we await a decision from Congress on looming automatic budget cuts, we may not realize the effects the changes could have on our hometowns.

The potential sequester will mean significant cuts for Colorado. Half of the cuts will come directly from the military, and the other half from various federal programs.

In El Paso County alone there are more than 40,000 active duty military members, and more than half of the county's federal dollars go to military operations.

So much of our area's military presence trickles down into everyone's daily lives as well as the success of our cities.

If the cuts go through the burden of the cost could fall mostly on the lower and middle classes.

"Locally we will see effects of this if it all goes as planned," Fred Crowley, Senior Economist with the UCCS Forum, explained.

A sequester isn't just about a national budget. It's about our everyday lives, which Crowley said will be effected due to our county's dependence on federal money.

"We won't notice it the first day, but a year or two into this if this continues, you will definitely start feeling it," he said.

So where will these effects be felt? According to the White House, in Colorado an estimated $8 million will be cut from Air Force operations, more than $8 million cut from education, about $2 million cut from clean air and energy, and Army operations would lose $57 million.

Crowley said many may not realize the trickle-down effect our area's military presence has on our economy. Soldiers and their families bring property taxes that affect our schools, purchases that contribute to sales taxes and daily dollars that keep our local businesses successful.

"If you think about the salaries these people get paid, [$57 million in cuts] translates to several thousand troops no longer being in El Paso County," Crowley said, "If that would happen it reduces the demand for housing, new cars, clothing, restaurants... it's a huge, huge impact."

Crowley added the addition of the Combat Aviation Brigade at Fort Carson could counteract the military cuts locally, bringing in higher-paid soldiers here if cuts were to occur state-wide, but there's still much more money coming from other federal dollars.

"Student loan programs, small business administration programs, headstart programs for schools, everything you can imagine is affected," he said.

Also affected could be Waldo Canyon Fire aid.

"$10 million to $11 million that was supposed to be going toward the burn area has been ripped out of the legislation now that we were supposed to get," he said, "Part of it would have reimbursed the city of Colorado Springs $2.5 million for money we had already spent. Now it's very likely we're not gonna get that."

Crowley's prediction is Congress will come to a deal late in the week to stop the sequester. But, if the cuts go through, a drastic spike in unemployment in the months following will prompt a quick response and swift action from our government.