McCrory: Sequester could affect research

The massive federal budget cuts known as the sequester set to kick in Friday could have a huge impact on North Carolina universities and Research Triangle Park.

That's because the $85 billion in across-the-board spending cuts include federal research money that comes to RTP businesses and schools like NC State, Duke, and UNC.

"They're in ten percentile of getting federal grants throughout the nation," said Governor Pat McCrory at a public appearance Thursday.

McCrory said his administration is reviewing the cuts to get a sense of the total impact, but he fears long-term damage to the state.

McCrory said he's also concerned about the impact on the state's military installations and the civilian jobs that could be affected.

Officials at Fort Bragg, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, and Camp Lejeune say they will try to cushion the reductions, but economists say the sequester could mean several thousand jobs in an already lackluster market.

"In my opinion this is not enough to send the economy locally, statewide and nationwide into a recession. But I don't want to miss the point that if you're in a particular location, and working on a particular program, you will be impacted," offered Mike Walden with NC State.

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