Schuylkill County resident Jeff Dunkel has filed two Right-to-Know requests regarding federal CARES Act allocations for the county.

Dunkel said Thursday he submitted the paperwork Wednesday after the weekly commissioners meeting.

He did not provide copies but said one asked for a list of expenditures. The other seeks copies of all checks and disbursements related to the money.

A frequent critic of the commissioners, he told the board he asked nine times before for an exact accounting.

“Can you tell me where the $12.7 million of the CARES money went?” he asked Wednesday.

Commissioners’ Chairman Barron “Boots” Hetherington told Dunkel that Mark Morgan, director of Susquehanna Accounting & Consulting Solutions Inc. in Harrisburg will “be here next week to give a breakdown of all the money spent on the CARES program.”

The county received $12,765,970 of CARES money. A full list of applicants who received the $1,098,112 was provided before. At the time, officials said 22 municipalities, 24 nonprofits, and 30 small businesses received money. The county kept a majority of it for expenses associated with the pandemic.

In January, commissioners vote 2-1 for a fee for service contract with the Harrisburg-based company not to exceed $50,000 to provide technical consulting for the county from Jan. 4 through Dec. 31. Commissioner Gary Hess voted no.

Paul Buber, finance director, said previously a meeting in October about the CARES money and applications and some “challenges the county was having in connections with the applications they received for the grant program, so really it’s a continuation of some of those challenges that the county was dealing with back then.” Secondly, he said the county was asking the company to “take the lead” in preparing their report to the county for the spending of the money. Thirdly, he said the contract will not exceed $50,000.

Dunkel said it’s “pretty sad” when a sitting commissioner, Gary Hess, had to ask at a public meeting where the money went.

“If he’s in the dark, that’s his situation,” Hetherington said about Hess, who commented, correcting him.

“I just wanted to correct you on that. You can say I was at meetings, but I didn’t get the information, Hess said.

He asked for an exact accounting several times and didn’t get an answer when asked several months prior.

“I wanted to see it in paper form where it was going,” Hess said.

Hetherington once again reiterated he didn’t know what Hess was talking about of him not knowing details.

“It should be made public so that people can actually see where the money is going to,” Hess said.

Clerk of Courts Maria Casey wrote a letter dated Feb. 10 to state Auditor General Timothy DeFoor requesting an audit of CARES funds given to the county.

Gary Miller, press secretary with the Department of the Auditor General, said in an email Thursday the department is “unable to accommodate requests for audits that are not statutorily mandated.” He also said primary legal responsibility for a review lies with the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Inspector General. The state Department of Community and Economic Development also gave some “oversight” of how counties used the money.

Before the meeting started, Hetherington said he wanted to be transparent with the public.

“We do appreciate, we do welcome and encourage public comment. We would like them to be about the business of the courthouse. I will not accept or tolerate comments that are personal attacks, slander, gossip or attempts to campaign for public office or discussions of personnel matters.”

Dunkel mentioned several other topics Wednesday including why commissioners don’t have a night meeting once a month for the benefit of the public. Work schedules can prevent people from attending or submitting comments in writing prior to the meeting. An agenda is posted a day before. Written comments are due by 3 p.m. Tuesday prior to the Wednesday meeting.