Carbon County municipalities and school districts looking to make some money while making some room in their inventory can do so in October.

The Carbon County Council of Governments will be hosting an auction on Oct. 1 at East Penn Fire Company/Smitty's Social Hall. The time of the event will be announced at a later date.Kris Hoffner, president of the council, said the group decided to hold an auction for its members earlier this year and decided to open it up to school districts in the county as well. School districts will pay a $100 fee for the auction because they are not members."The purpose of the auction is to help the municipalities," Hoffner said, adding that items that can be put up for auction can be anything, from vehicles to copiers and fax machines and even an I-beam. "It can be anything that municipalities no longer use and want to try and sell."The COG will receive 15 percent of the proceeds from the auction sales, while the municipality or school district will receive 75 percent of the sale of their items.The remaining 10 percent will go to the auctioneer for administration fees, ads and such.Hoffner said the idea for the auction came about after the Mountain Top council of governments invited the county to its Spring Fling, which includes an auction.Carbon County liked that idea and decided to try an auction of its own to help offset the costs associated with the group.Currently, council members pay $50 annually, which covers some administrative fees, but Hoffner said the money is stretched thin."This will help us," he said.The auction is open to anyone and not just municipalities and school districts."Anyone can come and buy," he said.The Carbon County COG has been in the works since 2013 and just secured a grant for the purchase of its first piece of joint equipment.It is also currently doing a contract for bulk purchasing of office supplies to help municipalities cut down on costs.