ALBANY – County officials from across the Hudson Valley and the state Friday charged the state budget, as is being prepared in Albany, would seriously impact counties by shifting state costs to the local taxpayer.

Several county officials participated in a conference call, each one recounting the local hit taxpayers would face with the state’s spending plan, which by law, must be adopted by midnight on Monday.

Orange County Budget Director Neal Blair said the budget would increase county spending by $1.6 million.

“It would give us no choice but to increase our property taxes or to cut our non-mandated services, which we have already begun to do,” he said.

Orange has imposed a hiring freeze, for one thing, Blair said.

John Tully, Putnam County’s deputy county executive, said the state budget would add onto the county’s already double digit tax hikes.

“This cost shift is going to translate to another increase on top of what we have already anticipated for 2009,” he said.

This will be the fourth year of double-digit tax hikes in Putnam.

Rockland County Executive Scott Vanderhoef said his county would face a six percent tax increase.

“Who takes the heat for that, of course, are the counties that have to implement these increases of property taxes while the state goes on to do what it has always done which is to continue programs with full throttle.”

Westchester Executive Andrew Spano added his voice to the criticism of the state.

“The state has really ceased to govern and at this point is just trying to maintain themselves,” he said. “This is not something that just happened today.”

In Dutchess County, Executive William Steinhaus said the state budget would drive up county spending buy some $7 million to $9 million.