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Prison health care company faces harsh criticism
Paul von Zielbauer of The New York Times spent a year investigating Prison Health Services, a private company that provides medical care in many of New York’s state prisons. “A yearlong examination of Prison Health by The New York Times reveals repeated instances of medical care that has been flawed and sometimes lethal. The company’s…
Read MoreComplaints high for Florida repair shop
Jim Schoettler of The Florida Times-Union used state records to show that auto repair shops in Northeast Florida were the subject of nearly 600 complaints since 1999. “Hundreds more are fielded by local agencies and the courts, while countless others are reported to the shops. No one knows how many people who suspect they’ve been…
Read MorePoliticians benefit from cheaper tickets
Dave McKinney of the Chicago Sun-Times obtained a list of state politicians who have the opportunity to purchase tickets to the top-ranked University of Illinois basketball team’s games at face value. “As demand for Illini tickets has rocketed off the charts, the university has dispersed more than 2,000 tickets to its trustees, dozens of state…
Read MoreTeacher pay rising faster than inflation
Kurt Rogahn of The (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) Gazette found that teacher pay “is increasing at rates better than inflation, despite warnings from the state’s leading teacher organization that Iowa’s average teacher pay hasn’t kept pace with inflation.” One researcher says the numbers show pay has gone up quite a bit, though the averages say it…
Read MoreAdministrative spending grows while student spending dwindles
Vicki McClure and Tania deLuzuriaga of The Orlando Sentinel used audit records of local charter schools to find that “Imagine Schools Inc., operator of 10 schools in Central Florida, spent as much as 50 percent less per student on instruction last year but about two to six times more on administration than other public schools…
Read MoreScam stole land from the dead
Mike Hoyem of The (Fort Myers) News-Press has a new twist on Florida land deals: the use of phony deeds to sell land owned by dead people. “Forged signatures, faked notarizations, phony witnesses and easy access to land records via the Internet are robbing the dead and their relatives of land as property values in…
Read MoreUnsafe bridges put public safety at risk
Dani Dodge of the Ventura County Star used Federal Highway Administration data to show that “twenty-eight of Ventura County’s 485 bridges are considered ‘structurally deficient’ … Bringing just 15 of those bridges up to standard would cost $50 million.” A map shows the location of the troubled spans, and a sidebar describes the condition of…
Read MoreConsulting work pays big for former employees
Brett J. Blackledge of The Birmingham News used state records to show that Alabama’s Department of Human Resources has spent millions on computer consultants, including payments to former agency employees who left DHR only to return for consulting work. “The agency responsible for helping needy children and families now is facing questions from federal officials…
Read MoreSecurity firm tipped off prior to airport inspections
Lance Williams of the San Francisco Chronicle used federal and court records to investigate a claim by a former employee of the firm, that the company was tipped off prior to security decoy tests. The tips allegedly helped the firm secure a 90 percent success rate with the tests. “That success rate helped the Chicago…
Read MoreNet worths rise for some legislators while in office
Lucy Morgan of the St. Petersburg Times reviewed the annual financial disclosure forms filed by Florida state legislators, finding that “while 22 of the 160 legislators report their legislative salary as their principal income, a review of annual financial disclosure forms shows that 37 House members and 16 senators reported net worths of more than…
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