Most Americans have been affected in some way by the economic recession that began in mid-2008.

There have been many people who have lost their jobs and struggled to find new ones, important businesses that have gone bankrupt, there have been cuts to important services like public safety and education and millions of households have had to take a hard look at how they spend their income.

People who are familiar with economic forecasts are predicting that the U.S. economy won’t recover next year.

While local governments have indeed scaled back, they also need to put themselves in their citizens’ shoes. There are people going without permanent shelter, without food and without other things most take for granted, right here in Decatur County.

Wherever possible, local leaders must tightly control all spending that isn’t necessary for maintaining essential quality-of-life. Use this time to consider how government can be more streamlined in the future.

The people they represent need all the frugality they can get.