CHICAGO — A disabled woman in Crescent City fears losing her transportation. A safety chief at Scott Air Force Base already has canceled a vacation. A Chicago court clerk worries he'll have to lock the doors of his federal courthouse a full day a week.

Uncertainty abounds about what could happen in Illinois if federal lawmakers in Washington don't do something to avert automatic budget cuts set to kick in Friday.

The White House has warned of draconian measures if the cuts take effect; critics say President Barack Obama's administration is using sky-is-falling scare tactics to score political points against Republican lawmakers. Some of the cuts would be mere fractions of total agency budgets.