Normally, county government in Mississippi deals with things like roads, gravel, drainage and taxes.

County business is pretty boring stuff in the grand scheme of things.

But a simple action tucked between the mundane, day-to-day work of the county board of supervisors is a potentially life-saving move.

The best part is that it’s extremely simple — raising the legal age required to purchase tobacco products.

Nationally, a reported 95 percent of all adult smokers say they started before they turned 21. Anecdotally, nearly all of the smokers we’ve met who acknowledge a desire to break the habit say they wish they had never started smoking in the first place.

Earlier this week, members of the Adams County Board of Supervisors announced their intention of holding a public hearing ahead of raising the legal age to purchase tobacco to 21.

Although the date of the hearing is not yet set, we applaud the effort.

In fact, this simple move has the potential to literally save scores of lives in future generations.

Ultimately, the real solution to curbing tobacco use will be in passing similar ordinances across the river in Concordia Parish as well. Otherwise, teens aiming to light up can simply cross the bridge to find their fix.

Still, we applaud the supervisors for stepping up and doing what is right.