St. Paul and Minneapolis officials say their cities will be hurt if Congress doesn't act on the current budget crisis and the automatic sequestration cuts take effect.

St. Paul officials said they conducted an analysis that shows "potential cuts in public safety [and] a reduction in neighborhood programs." They said the cuts "could negatively impact the city’s investment and debt portfolio."

St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman said in a statement:

"Communities across the country are just emerging from the worst recession in the history of the United States and are looking to Congress for a smart, thoughtful solution that doesn’t penalize local communities. Sequestration could have dire effects on communities across the country and I urge Congress to find a better way forward."

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak told the Washington Post this week that sequestration would harm the most vulnerable, with cuts to Head Start and employment-training programs and the loss of grant money to fight crime in high-impact neighborhoods.

"Minneapolis is a very successful city on almost every level except we have a very large gap between haves and have-nots, and this will cut exactly those services that help close the gap," Rybak said.

But Hennepin County Board Chair Mike Opat told the paper: "If you’re not receiving a check or food stamps, you’re probably not likely to hear the impact of the sequester immediately."

In St. Paul, the analysis showed potential cuts affecting the city might include public safety funding including:

• $250,000 to prevent human trafficking
• Up to $500,000 per year for equipment for St. Paul firefighters
• More than $500,000 to help fund our Emergency Management and Police Department Information Centers

And the city said a potential 8.5 percent reduction in Community Development Block Grant funds, HOME funds, and Emergency Shelter Grants that would:

• Limit the city’s ability to fund district councils
•  Hinder economic development programs when they are needed most
•  Prevent further investment in St. Paul’s neighborhoods and communities

In Minneapolis, Rybak also worried that an indirect effect of the cuts would be lower consumer spending, which could hit such Twin Cities-based companies as Target and Best Buy.