Over the last few days, we've explained what the new two percent tax cap and the mandate relief laws will mean. Now, our Steve Ference explains how those at the county level say it could mean major cuts across most county services when they put their budgets together next year.

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RENSSELAER COUNTY, N.Y. -- "The state doesn't live within their means," said Rensselaer County Executive Kathy Jimino. "The problem is the cap is not accompanied by mandate relief."

She applauds the recently passed two percent property tax cap, but adds that so-called "mandate relief" didn't provide much relief from the many programs the state has counties run and pay a portion of.

The state figures the law will save tens of millions of dollars by, for instance, lifting some restrictions on purchases. But Jimino says big cost programs like Medicaid and welfare weren't touched by the new law. This, at the same time that local governments will have to abide by the new tax cap, limiting how much money they can raise through taxes to make up the difference.

Now to put this in perspective, Jimino says if all the taxes, revenue, the county takes in is represented by a dollar, well, then 11 cents would be going to the services provided by the county. Eighty-nine cents of that goes towards mandates and that's before she says those mandates are expected to cost even more next year.

Jimino said, "Just the increase alone next year will be $4 or $5 million."

In other words, that increase in costs coupled with the tax cap leaves a gap. Since they can't cut state mandates at the local level, it means they would have to override the tax cap, or cut basic local services.

"That's our sheriff's road patrol, our senior services, our lunches, support services for seniors. Our veterans' services," she said.

And the tax cap/mandate gap adds up across the state.

"Almost $200 million of a gap, where is it going to come from? It has to come from local service reductions," said New York State Association of Counties Executive Director Stephen Acquario.

He says the governor and legislature deserve credit for what they did pass, at least for the tax cap.

Still, he said, "If we're getting to a position here, in the next five years or 10 years where local governments are only administering state services, why have them?"

All of these, issues we'll hear more about as counties put together next year's budgets.