Every person has their own view about how to spend or save the money they are responsible for or have a say over. That also applies to government officials, who routinely have to make important decisions about use of taxpayers’ money.

The City Council’s decision Tuesday night to follow City Manager Chris Hobby’s recommendation to give a 3 percent raise to all city employees beginning in March is understandable. The raises are not as rash an expense as they might have been during the middle of the economic recession that began in 2008, or even last September, when they were first proposed.

However, many citizens are still dealing with the fallout of the recession, whether it be their own stagnant income, increases in the basic cost-of-living or struggling to find employment. Those people—and to some extent, even those who have weathered the economic storm—don’t have the liberty to give themselves 3 percent raises.

It’s said, “Make hay while the sun shines.” The economic clouds are still lingering, and any non-essential government spending is still a questionable undertaking.