NORWICH – Chenango County taxpayers will pay seven percent more for social services next year if estimates predicting a nearly $23.5 million budget are on the mark.

The pending fallout from Wall Street’s losses and another round of possible program cuts from Governor David Patterson’s office loom heavy on the horizon, however.

“Without Wall Street ... New York State’s not going to be bringing in any money. ... The state’s going to be in dire straits pretty soon. It’s got to go somewhere. We are between a rock and a hard place,” Supervisor Richard Schlag, D-German, said at a meeting of the Safety and Rules Committee Tuesday.

Chenango County Department of Social Services Commissioner Bette Osborne reported that the number of caseloads “exploded” this year with 244 receiving family and safety net assistance compared to 174 total cases in 2006. The number of youths living in juvenile detention centers also increased, with four in facilities at a rate of $40,000 per child per year.

Osborne said she expected the number of family and safety net cases to edge up further because of the financial crisis.