Congress must periodically vote to reauthorize the act, and if they can‘t agree on the fiscal cliff issue, much of Indiana's $5.5 million will be gone.
If Indiana schools were to lose the estimated $114 million in federal education funding, programs for students with special needs would feel a deep impact.
Tax preparers might have to go back to the 2001 income tax rates, a table that has a lot of moving parts.
Lugar says there are some in Washington who, for partisan reasons, find it acceptable to send the country over the fiscal cliff.
Some experts estimate Indiana residents may experience a tax burden of between $2,000 and $4,000.
Superintendents and leaders of Head Start programs will have to cut their budgets if the country goes over the fiscal cliff.
Defense contractors in Indiana have already been seeking ways to make themselves more marketable to both the federal government and private companies.
Indiana school districts stand to lose more than $114 million if the automatic federal spending cuts go into effect.