While it is always very difficult to cut funding to worthwhile projects, I remain concerned about the fiscal health of the 2004-05 budget and the years beyond, and understand the Governor's concerns as well. Assembly Minority members have continuously said that reform of expensive programs like Medicaid must be included in the budget. The absence of real reform in this budget takes away the state's ability to support many important programs and provides insufficient relief to overburdened local governments and taxpayers. In order to grow the economy in New York we must face the fact that we are spending and taxing too much.