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Federal fines go uncollected across the nation
Martha Mendoza and Christopher Sullivan of The Associated Press used federal records to show that the amount of unpaid federal fines has risen sharply in the past decade, in an investigation that examined federal financial penalty enforcement across the nation. Individuals and corporations regularly avoid large penalties for wrongdoing — sometimes through negotiations, sometimes because…
Read MoreExecs benefit from backdating of stock options
Charles Forelle and James Bandler of The Wall Street Journal analyzed grant dates and stock movements and identified several companies with wildly improbable option-grant patterns. “The analysis bolsters recent academic work suggesting that backdating was widespread, particularly from the start of the tech-stock boom in the 1990s through the Sarbanes-Oxley corporate reform act of 2002.…
Read MoreDubious charities raise millions
Ronald Campbell of The Orange County Register reviewed more than 10,000 pages of court records, financial reports and other documents and found that former associates of imprisoned charity telemarketing king Mitch Gold have raised more than $83 million in four years for dubious charities. Fundraisers and managers kept almost all the cash, leaving just 7…
Read MoreDam threats in Hawaii underassessed
Karen Blakeman, staff writer with The Honolulu Advertiser, used National Inventory of Dams data from IRE and NICAR for a story about the deadly failure of a privately owned dam on the Hawaii island of Kaua’i. Two bodies have been found and five others are missing. Blakeman reported that state safety inspections of dams across…
Read MoreStates make little use of provision to help hurricane victims
Jenni Bergal of The Center for Public Integrity reviewed health records to find that states have barely used $2 billion provided in an emergency bill passed by Congress to help low-income hurricane victims scattered across the country. “Any state that took in Katrina evacuees could tap into the money to offer cash to those who…
Read MoreMd. churches violate law with political donations
John Fritze of The (Baltimore) Sun reviewed candidate finance reports to show that more than 100 churches in Maryland — including dozens in Baltimore — have made campaign contributions to political candidates in recent years, an act that is prohibited by federal tax law and blurs the line between politics and the pulpit. Some have…
Read MoreN.J. Megan’s Law deemed one of nation’s weakest
A team or reporters and editors with the Gannett New Jersey newspapers and Gannett News Service examine loopholes in Megan’s Law in a three-part series. The investigation found that New Jersey’s law stands as one of the weakest in the nation in immediately warning residents when an offender moves into their neighborhood. “In New Jersey,…
Read MoreCounty fails to monitor AIDS services program
Norberto Santana Jr. and Tony Saavedra of The Orange County Register used data crunching, document digging and old-fashioned gumshoe work to reveal how Orange County bungled its fledgling AIDS program for African-Americans. The investigation found what the county hadn’t bothered to look for when hiring an AIDS service provider. ” Pastor Aubrey Keys, the person…
Read MoreStates progress in reform of lobbying laws
Leah Rush and David Jimenez of The Center for Public Integrity report that 24 states have worked to strengthen or improve electronic disclosure systems since the Center’s 2003 report, “Hired Guns.” Meanwhile, federal lobbying disclosure laws have not changed in the past eight years. Political scandals, in many cases, were the catalyst for changes in…
Read MoreCounty officials surf Internet during public meetings
Garrett Therolf and Matthew Waite of St. Petersburg Times used Internet records to show that three Pasco commissioners visited numerous Web sites during commission meetings over the past three years. The investigation found personal use of county computers has gotten rank-and-file county employees fired. “Like many other workplaces, the county uses software to track employees…
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