Alabama voters are beginning to turn their attentions toward Gov. Bob Riley’s tax and accountability package that will be decided by a Sept. 9 referendum.

That package includes not only more than a billion dollars of tax increases, but also several measures aimed at moving state and local governments toward more accountability for those new revenues.

It’s clear that this issue is the single most important decision voters face in deciding the fate of the state. It’s a decision that should not be taken lightly.

Each person in Alabama who owns property, leases property and buys goods and services will be affected by this package. Each company doing business in our state will also be affected.

The bottom line is that the decision to dramatically alter Alabama’s fiscal landscape is in the hands We the People.

That’s significant. Far too often, tax increases, whether through straight taxation or through fees and other revenue-producing terms, are handed out by taxing jurisdiction with little or no public input.

With barely two months to go, we’d urge each Pike Countian to study the proposal’s impact on a personal level, make their decision and then go to the polls.

Together, we can move Alabama forward. It may come by way of the governor’s package, or by way of some other measure, but together Alabamians will make that decision on Sept. 9.