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The Post-Standard (Syracuse, NY) used payroll records to show that two trainers at a police academy run by the sheriff have far more than doubled their pay through staggering amounts of overtime. The father of one of the trainers runs the academy. The marathon shifts have inflated the state pension the trainers will receive for…
Read MoreA Tacoma, WA affordable housing nonprofit misspent nearly $2 million in state funds meant to build a lavish business center in central Tacoma, an accountant’s review for the state’s commerce department has found. Lewis Kamb of The News Tribune reports about the review’s findings, prompted by his ongoing coverage of mismanagement allegations and financial turmoil…
Read MorePoliticians and their supporters in California have routinely funneled money through county-level political party committees around the state, avoiding strict limits on campaign giving and hiding the source of millions in donations, a California Watch analysis shows. By using county parties as middlemen, both Democrat and Republican donors can contribute far more money than the…
Read MoreThe Fresno Bee published a two-part series on accountability problems with Fresno County First 5, an early childhood initiative approved by voters in 1998. The first story found that, despite promises made to voters and millions of dollars spent on evaluations, First 5 hasn’t produced a complete evaluation of its results, raising questions about the…
Read MoreNurses with troubled records can cross state lines and work without restriction, an investigation by the nonprofit news organization ProPublica and The Los Angeles Times found. Using public databases and state disciplinary reports, reporters found hundreds of cases in which registered nurses held clear licenses in some states after they’d been sanctioned in others, often…
Read MoreA Life at Sea/A Life at Risk, a six-part series by The Press of Atlantic City (N.J.), examined the crushing impact of federal and state fishing regulations on New Jersey’s $1 billion a year commercial fishing industry. “The regulations use size limits, gear restrictions, seasons, quotas and other methods to reduce the catch. A new…
Read MoreThe Huffington Post Investigative Fund exposes how lending practices at Washington Mutual’s subprime lender, Long Beach Mortgage, allowed fraud to run rampant. Former employees say efforts to stop fraudulent loan applications were commonly overridden and lavish commissions encouraged bad lending.
Read MoreA Charlotte (N.C.) Observer investigation showed how loopholes and understaffed regulators allow charities to pay almost any salary to their executives. The newspaper also revealed how many nonprofit CEOs are reaping the rewards. One nonprofit set up to help people in debt paid its chief executive more than $5 million – nearly everything it had.
Read MoreJoin Sarah Cohen of Duke University and Jennifer LaFleur of ProPublica in a one-hour webinar that will help you understand how to follow stimulus dollars from Congress to your town and discover useful tools to make it all easier. You’ll learn how to make sense of stimulus data, find out what is available and be…
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