Earlier this week, Adams County Supervisors discussed the need for the county to get its fair share of gaming revenues that may come from a casino development.

On the surface, the county’s recent spat with the City of Natchez over a fire protection agreement sparked the discussion.

The city wants the county to pay more for the city-provided fire protection and, as Supervisor Henry Watts correctly pointed out, the solution from the county’s perspective may already be in the works.

Potential revenues from a new possible casino development — a portion of which should go to the county — should easily offset the city’s request.

City critics may say it’s a money grab on the county’s part. We don’t think so.

It’s only fair that the county exercise its right to ensure it earns all that it’s due.

In fact, it’s written in state law that the county should earn its share of the revenue, based on the percentage if residents who live in the county vs. ones living in the city.

But the real issue from a taxpayer’s perspective shouldn’t be who gets a bigger piece of the pie and who pays which bill. The bigger issue remains — how can the city and county keep working on ways to consolidate city-county services?

Can the county take law enforcement, and can the city take on fire protection and we quit worrying so much about how tax dollars are split?

Who knows, maybe by focusing only on one aspect of public safety, each entity can save money and provide top-notch service for all taxpayers.