After releasing years-old audits at the final hour, the Garland Chamber of Commerce secured enough confidence to extend its 15-year economic development partnership with the city this week.

Garland residents and the City Council have taken it upon themselves to better track the chamber's public funds. The city's stake has increased from $250,000, when the partnership was established in 1994, to more than $465,000 last year. The Garland school district contributes $50,000 annually.

But when residents wanted a look at where the money was going, the chamber stated that its financial information was private.

Former mayoral candidate Mike Rose obtained a favorable ruling from the Texas attorney general's office to make the records public. At Tuesday's council meeting, he got an apology from Paul Mayer, the chamber's longtime chief executive officer.

"I'm learning the intricacies of working with a partnership with a public entity," Mayer told the council. "If it's your intent that we share that information as public information, that's exactly what we'll do."

Mayor Ron Jones emphasized that point, stating that under the new 10-year contract, annual audit information must be given out upon request as public information. The chamber will also present an annual plan to the council, starting in late January or early February.

"Everything we do is open as far as I'm concerned," Mayer said Friday. "The work plan is really going to give the council what they're looking for."

Rose credited former mayoral candidate Dino Quintanilla as being the first to ask the state for access to the annual audits, an effort dating to mid-2008. Former council member Jean McNeal has also been outspoken about the availability of the audits on her Web site.

"I thought it was important to put them on record that you're dealing with taxpayer money, you must account for it," Rose said.

For the last two years, the city's Audit Committee has stepped up its reviews, checking out the monthly statements provided by the chamber. The city auditor, the council members on the committee and Rose himself agree that everything appears to be on the up-and-up.

"As the city auditor said, all 10 of the audits he looked at are all quote-unquote clean," said council member Rick Williams, who chairs the audit committee. "There has never been even a hint of a scandal. The only reason we looked at the monthlies is that it was in the original contract."

The city was spending $800,000 on its own economic development team when it entered the agreement. Through the partnership, the city's investment in economic development is far less than Irving, Plano and Richardson – cities Garland sees as its competitors.

On Tuesday, Chamber Chairman Mark King pointed to $1.5 billion in tax base additions, 16,650 jobs created and more than 60 companies landed as results of the partnership.

"Those represent the intended consequences of the partnership," King said. "I think we can all agree that based on what we wanted to do from the start, the benefits of working together are clearly there."

Nobody seems to be debating that fact. The council approved continuing the relationship by a unanimous vote.

Still, the information was not immediately released to Rose. The state ruled Nov. 2 that the annual audits should be released to him within 10 days.

Records for 2005-09 were in his hands within a week, but those from 2000-04 were not turned over until Monday – the day before the contract was to be renewed.

Staff writer Karel Holloway contributed to this report.

Highlights of the economic development services agreement between the city and the Garland Chamber of Commerce:

Term: 10 successive one-year periods starting Jan. 10; can be canceled by either party by the end of any calendar year.

Program plan: The Chamber will present the City Council with annual plans for its services, programs and undertakings.

Payment: An annual fee of $465,397 in 2010, in monthly installments; fee can be increased or decreased as determined by the City Council in negotiation of the annual program plan.

Accounting and auditing: The Chamber will provide the city an annual financial audit and monthly accounting reports; all records, audits and reports are subject to the Texas Public Information Act and may be made available for review by the public.