County Executive Mike Breslin presented his 2012 budget that includes a big tax hike. He says it's the only way out. Our Erin Vannella reports.

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ALBANY COUNTY, N.Y. -- "It would concern me if I was resident of a county," said Governor Andrew Cuomo. "It would concern me if I was paying the bill."

That's how Governor Cuomo feels about the 20 percent property tax increase proposed Thursday by Albany County Executive Mike Breslin.

"We've cut services, we've cut programs, but there's no way we can come down to within the two percent tax cap," said Breslin.

In other words, Breslin says an increase, 10 times that of the current tax cap, is the only way to recover from fallen sales tax revenues, investment shortfalls and a $17.4 million deficit.

"Someone's got to bite the bullet and say no," said Breslin. "The responsible thing is to close the structural deficit now and get a plan to get us back on the right foot."

"If the Albany County executive says look, here's our situation, we want to do this, we want to build this, we had a problem and we have an immediate need and we need to raise taxes two, four, five, six, seven percent, whatever it is, and the people of the county say yes, god bless them," said Cuomo.

It's an uphill battle Breslin thinks he can win, optimistic county legislators will see his logic and put his budget to a vote.

"We've have more increased mandates now than we did three or four years ago," said Breslin. "We have over 600 less people to do it with. It's a burden for everybody and I can't ignore it. I can't walk away and say we'll just kick the can and put in some more one shots 'cause then that hole is just deeper at the end of the next year."