As the Congress enters the latest battle in the budget wars, states once again fear they will become fiscal collateral damage.

On Wednesday, the National Conference of State Legislatures, which represents lawmakers from across the country, sent President Barack Obama, Speaker of the House John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid a letter urging them to "examine all possible avenues for deficit reduction, including discretionary spending, entitlement reform and revenue-related options.

"We also understand that funding targeted for state and local governments has been and will continue to be reduced. However, our message remains the same - states will struggle if a disproportionate and excessive burden is transferred to us," the group wrote.

Specifically, they asked the federal government not to create new unfunded mandates, which are programs that states must carry out with no extra money. They also said the federal government should not force states to maintain high spending levels for Medicaid, the healthcare program for the poor administered by the states with partial reimbursements from the government.

The lawmakers would like infrastructure funding maintained at "levels sufficient to continue the economic benefits they provide" and programs for low-income populations "held harmless from spending reductions."