Posts by hdcoadmin
Investigation uncovers purchase card problems
Steve Lackmeyer and Ryan McNeill of The Oklahoman analyzed a never-completed 2002 audit of Oklahoma’s purchase card system. They found that for, “17 of the 20 agencies with cards at the time, receipts were not reviewed or verified to see whether the goods or services were received.” The state auditor is preparing to investigate the…
Read MorePolice department ignores residency requirement
Gordon Russell of The (New Orleans) Times-Picayune reports that while New Orleans has a residency requirement for its police officers, “dozens of Police Department sergeants and lieutenants and at least seven captains — the department’s highest civil-service rank — have been promoted in recent years despite claiming homestead exemptions outside the city.” The 10-year-old residency…
Read MoreCompanies tied to bureau donate heavily to Republicans
Mark Naymik and Joseph L. Wagner of The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer analyzed state campaign contributions to show that “top Ohio Republican officials and political committees have received millions of dollars in campaign contributions from companies managing money for the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. Almost two-thirds of the 212 companies hired by the bureau to invest…
Read MoreRestaurant prices outpace inflation in NYC
Jennifer Steinhauer and Jo Craven McGinty of The New York Times used restaurant price information from Zagat Guides and the paper’s own reviews to show that “in 1994, the average one-star meal cost $33; it now costs a little more than $50, pushing it outside many people’s weekend budgets. That is a 51 percent increase,…
Read MoreAnalysis of drunken-driving arrests reveal ‘ordinary people’
A team of reporters from the Detroit Free Press analyzed drunken driving arrests over a four-day period in May. They found those arrested were “… ordinary people taking ordinary chances.” The project looks at drunken driving from the perspective of a defense lawyer, bartenders and a deputy, as well as offering a sample of the…
Read MoreDevelopers have big plans for rural areas
John McCarthy of the Florida Today analyzed and mapped data from the Brevard County Property Appraiser’s database to report on growth and development in Brevard County, Fla. McCarthy found that land developers in the county “plan to turn agricultural land in the far reaches of the county into upscale housing developments …” The project includes…
Read MoreCrucial errors aided courthouse shooter
Cameron McWhirter and Steve Visser of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution use public documents and interviews to identify crucial missteps that led to the March 11 attack that left three people dead at the Fulton County Courthouse. The investigation found long-standing problems including “… a sick day for a deputy who may not have been sick, a…
Read MoreContribution through multiple companies help corporate donors elude limit
Ben Smith of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution analyzed campaign contributions to Gwinnett County commission races in the past two years, finding that “thousands of dollars in donations from companies sharing common addresses and company executives that appear to violate campaign contribution limits. Among them: nine companies headed by two developers whose firms gave to former Commission…
Read MoreNumber of highly paid transit employees triples
Mike Adamick of the Contra Costa Times used salary data obtained after a legal battle to show that “the number of BART employees making at least $100,000 nearly tripled since 2000. During the same time period, overtime payments surged by 147 percent for the transit district’s highest paid employees.” The transit agency originally resisted the…
Read MoreYouth charity fails to deliver on promise
Collins Conner and Bridget Hall Grumet of The St. Petersburg Times investigated the Florida Youth Conservation Corps, which receives a state no-bid contract to help maintain highway rights of way in exchange for providing jobs and scholarships to its young employees. “FYCC said 46 trainees got scholarships from 1999 to 2003, but none came out…
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