This week we talked to a gentleman who owns a small mom and pop cleaning business. We noticed he now was doing the work himself at his business instead of his employees. We asked him why, and he told us that business had dropped off and he could not afford to hire anybody to do his contracted jobs.

So now in addition to the normal work that is necessary to run a business, he is now his own laborer.

This gentleman recognized he could not pay people to do what he now does and still have a business.

The county of Rockdale is in the same position; they cannot continue to operate the same old way as when the economy was booming.

They have two choices — either cut services and personnel or raise taxes.

Unfortunately we are seeing signs that their intent might be to raise taxes in order to balance the county budget instead of making the same hard decisions that our friend the cleaner has made.

In this climate raising the taxes of Rockdale County homeowners is not acceptable.

We ask our elected commissioners to do the right thing and cut what is necessary to balance the budget. Raising taxes is the wrong thing to do in today’s economy and sends the message to Rockdale residents that their elected officials do not care what the majority of their constituents themselves are doing in order to stay solvent.