Homeless U.S. veterans stand in line to receive free services at a 2011 event hosted by the Department of Veterans Affairs in Denver. Sequestration will likely threaten those who need help most. John Moore/Getty Images

CENTENNIAL, Colo. -- A 60-year-old man living on disability payments and food stamps in suburban Denver called the Hunger Free Hotline Tuesday afternoon.

"I got a letter from the state of Colorado stating that my food stamps are going to decrease," the man said. "I only get $200 a month. I think I may need to start getting some assistance in that area."

He was one of five callers in an hour to one hotline worker that afternoon. A Colorado Springs woman was also concerned about the letter notifying her of a benefit decrease on Nov. 1. Two men said they were homeless and needed food; one of them also needed insulin to control his diabetes. Another woman's husband had left her and her four children, and they needed food while waiting for a food stamp application to be approved.

The federal budget mess -- the end of stimulus money, bringing reductions in food stamp benefits; sequestration cuts that took effect in March; and the potential for more across-the-board cuts, or even a government shutdown -- is taking its toll in Colorado and across the nation.

From food stamps to water gauges, more Coloradans will feel potentially greater pain from sequestration and other budget cuts in the months to come if Congress fails to reach a deal.

A second round of automatic, across-the-board budget cuts known as sequestration will kick in if Congress fails to enact a budget that reduces spending elsewhere or raises money to pay for programs. That means furloughs for federal workers, cuts in defense contracts, reductions in education spending and more.

The first round of sequestration potentially meant cuts of up to $106 million for state agencies, with $40.6 million coming from education, Colorado budget analysts estimated earlier this year. Those analysts have yet to tabulate the actual outcomes since that round of cuts took effect March 1.

But Kathy Underhill, executive director of Hunger Free Colorado, said the impact is real. Her statewide nonprofit group works to increase public awareness about and to reduce hunger. It also operates the Hunger Free Hotline.

In addition to the upcoming food stamp decreases, sequestration meant cuts to low-income housing, Head Start and child care. In other words, those who can least afford it may be most affected, Underhill said.

"There's this whole litany of programs that are creating a domino effect, a cascading effect for low-income homes in Colorado. These are families that are just a paycheck away" from financial disaster, she said.