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The (Syracuse, N.Y.) Post-Standard’s Mike McAndrew and Michelle Breidenbach expose abuses of New York’s “Empire Zone” tax breaks which negate the programs intended purpose:” to create jobs in targeted impoverished areas.” One mall owner was able to cash in on about $14 million in tax breaks by paying the city of Geneva to expand the…
Read MoreBrian Sharp of the Democrat and Chronicle in Rochester, N.Y., takes a look at the Rochester police department’s overtime pay, an issue gouging the city’s budget. Inflated wages due to overtime are being used to bolster the pensions of officers nearing retirement. The investigation included analysis of 10 years of salary records which are included…
Read MoreThomas Hargrove of Scripps Howard News Service, along with contributions from Sruthi Kunnel and Lee Bowman, completed an investigation into food-borne illness outbreak reports made to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Medical officials in Kentucky have already ordered reform’s to the state’s disease reporting process as a result of this investigation. Links to…
Read MoreJohn McQuaid, co-author, with Mark Schleifstein, of Path of Destruction: The Devastation of New Orleans and the Coming Age of Superstorms, interviews Charles Lewis, founder of the Center for Public Integrity, on the future of investigative journalism on the Internet. McQuaid is blogging for newassignment.net.
Read MoreThe Center for Public Integrity has relaunched its “Media Tracker” database in an updated and expanded form. The improved features of the online database “detail the scope of the political influence of top communications, entertainment and electronic companies” by including information on political contribuntions and lobbying expenditures. Click here to see their press release.
Read MoreSteve Orr, of the (Rochester, N.Y.) Democrat and Chronicle, investigates the failed project for a high-speed ferry intended to operate between Rochester and Toronto. Orr “reveals a troubling trail of political maneuvering, lax oversight and lack of follow-through” – issues that cost state taxpayers $14 million.
Read MoreTed Sherman and Josh Margolin of The Star-Ledger cover the details emerging from a “whistle blower lawsuit” against the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. In an effort to make their cardiac surgery program seem robust to avoid being shut down, UMDNJ “ paid at least nine local cardiologists in private practice salaries…
Read MoreCheryl W. Thompson of The Washington Post reports that officials in Prince George’s County charged thousands of dollar in personal purchases to county-issued credit cards. ” The Washington Post reviewed billing statements and other documents covering credit-card use over the past four years for officials in Prince George’s, where there has been a move to…
Read MoreIn another installment of The Miami Herald‘s House of Lies series, reporter Debbie Cenziper found documents, emails and correspondence that showed Miami-Dade government leaders were warned about serious breakdowns in public housing but failed to take action, costing taxpayers millions of dollars.
Read MoreIn a 4-part series, the Los Angeles Times looks at the lingering results of uranium mining on a Navajo reservation where almost 4 million tons of uranium was mined for over 4 decades. “Navajos inhaled radioactive dust, drank contaminated water and built homes using rock from the mines and mills. Many of the dangers persist…
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