Dressed in flowered aloha shirts and shorts and discussing topics like homeland security and illegal drugs, thousands of county officials began a national conference criticized in several communities across the country for its exotic location and cost to taxpayers.

About 3,000 elected officials and others are attending the National Association of Counties' annual convention at the Hawai'i Convention Center through Tuesday.

The Hawai'i gathering, the association's first here in 30 years, was castigated by a number of county officials around the nation who refused to participate in the event, calling it an abuse of taxpayer money.

But officials who came defend the tropical tourist spot as a place to network with colleagues and seek solutions for problems in their home counties. They're supported by Hawai'i officials trying to build a reputation as a place to do serious business and still enjoy the balmy weather and tropical splendor.

On Friday, they were greeted with shell lei at registration, where they planned sessions to attend and signed up for tours to beaches, cultural sites, tropical gardens and military memorials.

Finley Jones, a commissioner from Sussex County, Del., who took time out for scuba diving on Thursday, said he wants to learn how other counties are coping with land use and affordable- housing issues.

"It's nice to know that we are not alone. We are all dealing with the same problems," said Jones, who came with his wife and plans to visit the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor.

Doug Wood, a commissioner from Johnson County in Kansas, said he wants to learn how other counties care for youths who run away from home.

Each year his county turns down 160 runaways because of inadequate facilities to house them, he said.

"We have youngsters who need alternative homes," said Wood, whose interview was cut short by his 9-year-old granddaughter, Sarah Muller, tugging at his aloha shirt. "This is boring," she said.

Officials are staying at five official conference hotels in Waikiki, including the Hilton Hawaiian Village.

Most of the county officials flew in on Thursday, bleary-eyed but ready for business.

Steve Sirmon, chief information officer for St. Charles Parish, La., acknowledged he would have fun in Hawai'i as he stood in the open-air lobby of the Hilton wearing a green aloha shirt, khaki shorts, catching a peek at the set of waves combing Waikiki's turquoise surf.

Sirmon said he planned to discuss coastal erosion and hurricane protection in his state, which he called a problem of national proportions.

"We need to stop losing Louisiana. We are getting wiped out," said Sirmon, adding that a commissioner once returned from a similar trip with a flood-prevention tool that saved his county thousands of dollars.

Formed in 1935, the National Association of Counties supports more than 2,000 counties, representing more than 80 percent of the U.S. population. Its main mission is to lobby for county issues in Washington, D.C.

Despite the controversy surrounding this year's trip, association spokesman Jeremy Ratner said the 3,000 registrations match attendance at previous conventions.

"That's exactly what we've had in past years," he said. "But there have been some cancellations."

Attendees on Friday lined up to purchase tour packages in a booth that had slower traffic than for other conventions such as the American Psychological Association, said Ike Hara, one of five staffers selling tickets.

But Hara said sales should surge as officials settle on their convention schedules.

Sammie Jacobs, a commissioner from Columbus County, N.C., who came with his wife, Jean, signed up for a trip to Pearl Harbor and USS Arizona Memorial, which the couple agreed was a must-see since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

The convention, which kicked off with a session on terrorism, will cover everything from agriculture to transportation to healthcare and technology. There also are 15 educational sessions with a focus on community and economic development, social services, homeland security and the environment. Five other sessions will give officials tips on how to better govern their counties.

Event organizers say they expect a session tomorrow on the troubles caused by crystal methamphetamine or "ice" to be one of the best attended. A recent survey by the association ranked it as the leading drug problem in 60 percent of the nation's counties.

Angelo D. Kyle, the association's president, said conventioneers who kick back at the beach after a full day's session are more productive the next day.

"If you are in a more relaxed atmosphere, a person is much more productive," said Kyle, a county board member from Lake County, Ill., who brought his wife along.