At a time when Americans and New Yorkers in particular are feeling the effects of a serious economic downturn, the President has proposed an irresponsible budget that prioritizes permanent tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans over critical resources for health care, housing, education, infrastructure and public safety, among other essential needs.

The President�s budget will wreak havoc on the state�s health care system, which serves more than 4 million Medicaid patients. The budget reduces funding by $200 billion for Medicaid and Medicare, which will have a devastating impact on important programs that serve low income families, children and seniors.

These cuts compound the Administration�s troubling record when it comes to health care. Specifically, the President twice vetoed the State Children�s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) bill, which would have provided coverage to over 10 million children throughout the country. The Administration also proposed regulations that cut $12 billion in Medicaid funding to states. In New York, we are unwilling to sit back and let the White House abdicate its responsibility, so I have committed state dollars to cover all of the state�s 400,000 uninsured children.

Unfortunately, when it comes to sound policy for our future, it is not only health care that suffers in this budget. The President cuts funding for education � a necessary engine for economic growth that we need to rebuild New York�s economy, especially Upstate. We cannot compete in the global Innovation Economy if we do not adequately prepare our future workforce.

The President�s budget proposes once again to under-fund the No Child Left Behind law. It cuts funding for after-school programs and higher education programs such as the Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (SEOG) program, which provides many New York Pell Grant recipients with up to an additional $4,000 annually for college.

Here in New York, we understand the undeniable link between quality education and economic growth. This year, I proposed historic increases in education funding for the second year in a row. Despite challenging fiscal times, I have kept our commitment to increasing school funding by $7 billion over 4 years, while demanding greater accountability. I proposed the creation of a $4 billion Higher Education Endowment and a significant influx of capital to dramatically improve our higher education system statewide.

The President�s budget also fails to take the necessary steps to clean up a housing crisis, which the Administration helped create. From 2007 to 2009 there could be an estimated 68,000 foreclosures in New York equaling over $9 billion in estimated losses to homeowners and neighboring property values. This requires a serious, comprehensive federal response, yet the President�s budget does nothing even as it slashes funding for Community Development Block Grants, housing programs for the elderly and disabled, and rural housing and economic development programs.

In New York, we are doing what we can to address the subprime problem by creating a $100 million �Keep the Dream� refinancing program that will offer homeowners with risky mortgages the opportunity to refinance and avoid possible foreclosure. We have also proposed $400 million for the development of more affordable housing.

Another serious cause for concern for New Yorkers is the President�s failure, for the first time, to meet funding levels for highways and transit funding. The President proposes to shore up the Highway Trust Fund with monies from the Transit account, placing both funding sources in a position to be exhausted in the next fiscal year. Recognizing that New Yorkers use mass transit more often than any other state – 5.2 million people a day – this federal action could negatively counteract our proposed record-setting state aid for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA).

Finally, as New York State remains a unique target, it is critical for the federal government to adequately fund homeland security programs to insure the safety and wellbeing of our residents. There have been some funding increases in key areas such as transit security, but it is alarming that the President�s most serious discretionary cuts trim programs that secure our ports, integrate communications systems, allow our urban areas to develop security strategies and train first responders to prepare for potential terrorist incidents.

The President�s misplaced priorities are irresponsible and fail to move the country and our state forward. In the weeks and months ahead, I will work closely with New York�s Congressional delegation and governors across the country to ensure passage of a responsible budget that implements sound policy, prioritizes the critical needs of families, and fuels economic growth.