A year after some township officials learned of the fund's existence and eight months after it became public knowledge, Robinson commissioners Monday agreed to have an auditor try to figure out where $191,000 in mystery funds came from and where they should go.

Whether that means that will actually happen is uncertain. For one thing, the agreement was informal -- it was not put in the form of a motion and approved. For another, even formal motions on this issue don't always lead to action.

"Did we or did we not approve a motion at last month's meeting to take any and all legal action necessary to get this information?" Commissioner Stephanie Triko-Selelyo asked, referring to copies of the checks deposited into the account.

They did. On June 9, commissioners voted to have solicitor Sam Kamin take legal action to get copies of the checks from the bank if former treasurer and tax collector Frank Murgia could not produce them. The deadline was set for June 25, when the commissioners were to continue the June 9 meeting.

On June 25, Ed Ritter, Mr. Murgia's successor, said he had gotten a substantial number of new documents from Mr. Murgia, but that the deposit checks were not among them. He suggested bringing in an auditor. The commissioners did not take action.

On Monday, Mr. Ritter again said the checks were necessary to figure out where the money in the two accounts -- which were in Mr. Murgia's name -- came from, and how the funds should be disbursed.

Mr. Kamin warned the commissioners that the bank might have to retrieve the copies from microfilm, and that it could cost "thousands and thousands of dollars" to get them.

Mr. Ritter said he would contact the bank to see about the cost of getting copies, but noted that because the accounts were in Mr. Murgia's name, the bank would not give him the records.

Mr. Kamin said he should be able to get a letter from Mr. Murgia authorizing the release of the records.

"I'm worried to death that there are people out there who paid their taxes and have not been credited for it" because there are no deposit records on the $191,000, Mr. Ritter said.

The mystery money is one of several long-standing, unresolved issues facing the commissioners. The newest commissioner, Ron Shiwarski, said he is growing impatient.

In comments at the end of the meeting, Mr. Shiwarski referenced the movie "Groundhog Day," in which the main character is forced to relive the same day over and over.

"Sometimes I feel like I'm stuck in a Robinson version of the same thing," he said. "We have these meetings and it's the same story line, the same plot and the same conclusions every month."

Mr. Shiwarski rattled off a string of unresolved issues then proposed a string of reforms including, among other things, doing "bipartisan, comprehensive midyear budget reviews," bringing "a conclusion to any ongoing problem regardless of political fallout" and finding help for Manager Rich Charnovich "immediately and apolitically."

Mr. Shiwarski's words passed without comment from the other commissioners.