 Paterson's budget provided property tax relief, delivered aid to municipalities, and restored hundreds of millions in property tax rebates for middle-class homeowners and $1 billion for upstate economic development.The budget provided for a tuition remission program for military veterans, offering them free tuition at both SUNY and CUNY institutions.Even though the budget enacted was the first in a decade that included less spending than the proposal, Paterson promised to slash the following year's state budget by five to 10 percent, because the spending plan he inherited was "too big and too bloated".