News release: “A record number of municipal officials expressed their growing pessimism for the nation’s direction, according to a survey released by the National League of Cities (NLC). The 2008 State of America’s Cities: Annual Opinion Survey of Municipal Officials demonstrates the widespread nature of the current economic crisis is having on cities’ bottom lines. The State of America’s Cities survey, created nearly 20 years ago, shows that at mid-recession, more than six out of 10 city officials are pessimistic about the nation’s future. This percentage is much greater than at the same point during the two previous recessionary periods. Seven in ten city officials say that their cities see overall economic conditions as being a problem, with nearly one in two reporting that they are having problems financing city services.”