ALBANY – Jobs, jobs, jobs and the overall economy have surfaced as priority issues confronting county government officials, according to the fourth annual “State of the Counties Survey” conducted by the New York State Association of Counties.

“Clearly the national and state economic recession is being felt on a local level. Consistently, county officials recognize that most critical component of recovery is to foster job growth in our communities,” said Stephen J. Acquario, the executive director of the Association of Counties, a group representing all of the state’s 57 counties and the City of New York with its five boroughs.

The survey also showed that county leaders believe that the most important issues facing the nation are jobs and the economy - a dramatic shift from the last three years, which pegged the Iraq War as the most critical issue for Americans. Last year, 42 percent of respondents said the War was the most important, compared to this year in which 73 percent said jobs and the economy were most important.

“Another shift in opinion from last year is that our county officials are acutely concerned about the state budget deficit. It barely registered in last year’s survey,” said Acquario.