Community colleges in nearly half of the states will probably face midyear reductions in their appropriations, according to a survey of members of the National Council of State Directors of Community Colleges. The study paints a bleak picture of a widening fiscal crisis among state governments, which started in the most recent budget year and is expected to have a major effect on all higher-education sectors. The survey, which covered every state but Alaska and New Hampshire, very likely fails to capture the full extent of the fallout from the financial crisis, because state directors started to respond in August, before the Wall Street collapse of mid-September. Indeed, of the 22 state officials who responded after September 18, more than half said the likelihood of a midyear budget cut was either high or very high. The survey also shows that longer-term trends in state budgets, and not just the current state of the economy, may shape higher-education appropriations for years to come. Three in five respondents said structural, or chronic, budget deficits in their states will hurt public colleges, particularly community colleges, in the future.