The IRE office will be closed from December 25th to January 5th.
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Empire Zone tax breaks revealed
Michelle Breidenbach and Mike McAndrew of the Syracuse Post-Standard report on the paper’s victory in a lawsuit that forced New York state to reveal how it distributes $558 million in tax credits to businesses. “The state kept the dollar amounts secret for years, even as the public and state legislators questioned how some of the…
Read MoreResponse times faster on inner-city fires
John Tedesco, Karisa King and Kelly Guckian of the San Antonio Express-News analyzed six years of San Antonio Fire Department response-time data and found that firefighters reach inner-city structure fires quicker than in the outlying areas where firefighters cover more territory with fewer stations. In response to the Express-News coverage, local officials pledge to address…
Read MoreSuperintendent profits while district falters
David Hunn of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports on Riverview Garden School District superintendent, Henry P. Williams. Williams “directed at least $85,000 in extra payments to his retirement and insurance accounts,” payments not included in his contract. The paper’s investigation shows that these deposits started about four years ago. In addition to financial improprieties, the…
Read MoreTexas Youth Commission investigation
The Dallas Morning News has posted a page dedicated to its continuing investigation into sexual abuse at Texas juvenile detention centers. Records obtained by the paper showed that young inmates were being sexually assaulted, and nothing was done to stop it, despite complaints and reports by staffers at the West Texas State School. Included on…
Read MoreLax inspections leave Pennsylvania pets in peril
Tim Darragh and Christopher Schnaars of The Morning Call investigated the inspection of Pennsylvania dog kennels. Analyzing a database of 20,000 inspections since 2003, they found that kennel owners almost always got a satisfactory grade, even when they had violations. This kennel inspection data was made availabe on The Morning Call‘s site and is searchable…
Read MorePost-season success equals big rewards for winning coaches
Steve Weiberg and Jodi Upton of USA Today looked at the salaries of men’s Division I basketball coaches. “USA Today obtained contracts or other documents detailing salaries for coaches at 58 of the 65 schools in the 2006 tournament field. Their average salary this season: nearly $800,000. In the six marquee conferences
Read MoreMajor political contributor receives helping hand
Reporters Cary Spivak and Patrick Marley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel disclosed that a top official in Gov. Jim Doyle
Read MoreMiami’s political leader arrested on fraud and grand theft
Debbie Cenziper of The Miami Herald reports that one of Miami’s leading political and civic figures, Raul Masvidal, was arrested on fraud and grand theft charges. The arrest is the result of an investigation prompted by The Herald‘s “House of Lies” series that exposed rampant corruption in the Miami-Date Housing Agency. Masvidal is one of…
Read MoreSqueezing millions from pennies
Ron Campbell of the Orange County Register reports on Irvine businessman Mark Ellis who made millions of dollars through his money-losing penny stock company, Winsted Holdings. By reverse-splitting the stock and then flooding the market with billions of new shares, he effectively drove down the stock’s price to a hundredth of a penny.The story explores…
Read MoreHousing conditions for Milwakee’s impoverished mentally ill
Reforms promised after the story reveals that man under Milwaukee County’s care was dead for days before his body was discovered. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Meg Kissinger continues her year-long coverage of housing conditions for Milwakee’s impoverished mentally ill. The latest story details how a man had been dead for up to four days before…
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