Despite a shrinking population of residents, over the past three years the City of Natchez’s public payroll has inched higher and higher.

A recent analysis comparing two months — May 2012 and May 2015 — reveals some startling changes.

In just three years’ time, ironically the same time current Mayor Butch Brown has been in office, the city’s payroll appears to have increased by the cost of a modern SUV, each month.

Tens of thousands of dollars in payroll — not counting the cost of health benefits, retirement benefits, etc. — are causing significant cash shortages for the city.

Several city aldermen have suggested an immediate hiring freeze across all city departments.

That makes logical sense to us until aldermen — and the public — can wrap their heads around exactly how the city’s finances work. For years the city has been “flying blind” without good, solid numbers from the largely dysfunctional city clerk’s office, but that excuse wears thin with us.

The biggest issue is: What can the city do to stop the problem?

Freezing city hiring is an excellent first step in that process.

The second is to evaluate exactly what jobs are needed in city government and determine, conservatively, exactly how many man hours are needed to complete those jobs. From there, the city can adequately determine if its departments are staffed appropriately.

Until that long, boring and tedious process is completed, the city will continue to gamble each year with taxpayers’ money and be uncertain how best to spend it.