FINZEL — An accountant confirmed that Garrett County doesn’t have $2.2 million to help the school system when County Commissioner Jim Raley met with concerned citizens at the Finzel Fire Hall on Thursday about the proposed closing of Route 40 Elementary and two other schools.

The county doesn’t have $2.2 million this year and won’t have it in the future, according to Jeff Conner of Fike, Conner & Associates CPAs, who looked at the county’s financials.

“We are going to have to dip into our coffers. We do have some rainy day funds but it’s only going to buy us a couple years,” said Conner.

One citizen asked how commission chairman Robert Gatto came up with $2.2 million that he motioned to give to the board of education to close the funding gap during a commission meeting Tuesday and asked if that money was part of the county’s maintenance of effort.

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