The early bird deadline for 
Promotions and new staff strengthen IRE
Jim Davenport of The Associated Press wrote a series of reports detailing the costs of public records and abuse of executive sessions, as part of a statewide Freedom of Information audit completed by The Associated Press and the South Carolina Press Association. The investigation found that a quarter of elected officials in a statewide survey…
Read MoreBert Dalmer of The Des Moines Register analyzed land records to uncover an insider land deal that makes big-name developers rich but ends with taxpayers paying twice as much. The operators of a struggling scale-model air show sold 84 acres along Interstate Highway 35 at $15,000 an acre, though other land being sold in the…
Read MoreMc Nelly Torres of South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports that, despite an engineer’s independent study showing workmanship and materials that did not meet standards in a hurricane-prone area, homeowners have been waiting 10 years for their homes to be fixed. Torres reviewed hundreds of records, including a grand jury report, two independent studies, and other construction-related…
Read MoreTawnell Hobbs and Kent Fischer of The Dallas Morning News reviewed district records to show that more than 2,300 school district employees are getting car stipends this year, at a total cost of nearly $3.7 million. This despite the fact that their job description does not include travel. "In a year when DISD cut some…
Read MoreBrad Schrade of The Tennessean analyzed three years of the patrol’s promotions and proposed promotions to show that two-thirds of Tennessee Highway Patrol officers tapped for promotion under Gov. Phil Bredesen gave money to his campaign or had family or political patrons who did. Among those with such connections, more than half were promoted over…
Read MoreRAI 24 News, a news channel in Italy, reports that the United States used white phosphorus as a chemical weapon in the November 2004 attack on Fallujah. The Christian Science Monitor writes about the piece, including information and links from other news sources. RAI’s Web site includes a statement from the U.S. Embassy that, in…
Read MoreBill Finch and Ben Raines of the Mobile Register used an independent energy-use analysis to show that Alabama natural gas customers are likely to pay hundreds of dollars more for the same amount of natural gas than customers in neighboring states this winter. "The higher price that the Alabama Public Service Commission allows Alabama utilities…
Read MoreSteve Neavling of The Bay City Times and the Detroit Free Press reviewed bills at the tax-funded Area Agency on Aging to show that the agency credit cards were charged for expenses running from a dozen roses to 14 out-of-state trips to locales such as Boston, San Francisco and Puerto Rico. "The regional agency that…
Read More