Like many communities, Natchez and Adams County are in debt for various projects, from road improvements to a convention center.

But Natchez and Adams County are also about to enter even tougher economic times, with International Paper closing its mill this month.

The seriousness of the situation was reinforced Monday when county supervisors voted to borrow more money to pay for unforeseen expenses &045; echoing a similar move earlier this month.

Neither the city nor the county has approached its debt ceiling, the limit on how much bond debt a government entity can incur.

Tough times call for financial prudence, but there is a dangerous temptation for public officials to look to cut all expenses &045; limiting projects that could actually help grow the community and its economy. The old adage &uot;you have to spend money to make money&uot; still holds true.

Instead of drastically reducing expenses, the city and county should look at reorganizing departments and services.

A business going through tough times, for example, wouldn’t throw in the towel and cut all expenses &045; it would look for ways to cut back and grow its revenue.

That doesn’t mean the city or county should have to raise taxes. But it does mean elected officials should look at how best to manage their resources to meet our community’s needs.

Perhaps that reorganization will mean consolidating some city and county services. It makes sense, in managing resources, to cut those that are duplicated.

Consolidation has been one of those long discussed issues over the years, but no one has ever acted on the concept. It would take some innovative thinking &045; and some quashing of political egos &045; to achieve it, but at perhaps no other time has it made more sense to consider it.

Tough times call for tough decisions. And we need our leaders to be ready to make them.