All of this sequestration nonsense is a political smokescreen. Closing towers willy-nilly is another example of politics gone wrong. Of course there are towers that should be closed due to lack of demand for services, but not without performing due diligence first!
The FAA already has a process for evaluating the safety implications and measuring cost versus benefit and it's not being followed. IOW, each tower needs to be evaluated individually to determine whether it meets the criteria for being needed. Simple traffic counts are not the only consideration either. Airspace usage, peak traffic levels and IFR activity are among the things which need to be evaluated in order to make an informed determination as to which airports require ATC services, which don't and what level of services are required.
The potential for lawsuits to halt the closures has already been publicized. This is why the closure date has been pushed back and also why it's been reported by Avweb and others that members of congress are currently considering the introduction of a bill to take these decisions away from the administration in the form of new law. All unnecessary if only the existing rules were being followed. I guess we'll see what happens...
westhawk