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Environment

Disaster After Disaster

Growing Storms, Faltering Aid

The costs of natural disasters are skyrocketing. America’s systems for preparing for them and helping victims are falling short.

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Disaster After Disaster

Louisiana to Drop Lawsuits Against Katrina Survivors Over Recovery Grants

Louisiana sued thousands of homeowners for not following the rules in how they spent recovery grants. After a joint news investigation, the governor announced Thursday that the state won’t try to collect the money.

by David Hammer, WWL-TV, and Richard A. Webster, Verite News,

Local Reporting Network

Disaster After Disaster

Louisiana Sued Hurricane Katrina Survivors for Misusing Recovery Grants. Now It Has Halted Collection Efforts.

Louisiana sued thousands of homeowners for not following the rules in spending grants after Katrina. After a joint news investigation, the state says it hopes a federal agency will approve a settlement that will allow it to drop the lawsuits.

by Richard A. Webster, The Advocate | The Times-Picayune, and David Hammer, WWL-TV,

Local Reporting Network

7 stories published since 2022

Thousands of Katrina Survivors Were Freed From Debt to the State. Those Who Already Paid Are Out of Luck.

by Richard A. Webster, Verite News, and David Hammer, WWL-TV,

Behind the Key Decision That Left Many Poor Homeowners Without Enough Money to Rebuild After Katrina

by David Hammer, WWL-TV,

An Exodus Unlike Any Other: Why Half the People in This Community Moved Away After Hurricane Katrina

by Richard A. Webster and Jeff Adelson, The Times-Picayune | The Advocate, and Sophie Chou, ProPublica,

The Federal Program to Rebuild After Hurricane Katrina Shortchanged the Poor. New Data Proves It.

by Richard A. Webster and Jeff Adelson, The Times-Picayune | The Advocate, David Hammer, WWL-TV, and Sophie Chou, ProPublica,

This Hurricane-Ravaged Town Has Waited Years for Long-Term Aid. It Could Happen Again.

by Mike Smith, The Times-Picayune | The Advocate,

Katrina Survivors Were Told They Could Use Grant Money to Rebuild. Now They’re Being Sued for It.

by Richard A. Webster, The Advocate | The Times-Picayune, and David Hammer, WWL-TV,

Did You Get the Help You Needed After a Hurricane or Tropical Storm? We’re Investigating Disaster Relief.

by Richard A. Webster, The Advocate | The Times-Picayune,

What We’re Watching

During Donald Trump’s second presidency, ProPublica will focus on the areas most in need of scrutiny. Here are some of the issues our reporters will be watching — and how to get in touch with them securely.

Learn more about our reporting team. We will continue to share our areas of interest as the news develops.

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Sharon Lerner

I cover health and the environment and the agencies that govern them, including the Environmental Protection Agency.

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Andy Kroll

I cover justice and the rule of law, including the Justice Department, U.S. attorneys and the courts.

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Melissa Sanchez

I report on immigration and labor, and I am based in Chicago.

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Jesse Coburn

I cover housing and transportation, including the companies working in those fields and the regulators overseeing them.

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Most Read

    The USDA Wouldn’t Let Her Give Up Her House When She Couldn’t Pay Her Mortgage. Instead, It Crushed Her With Debt.

    The USDA failed to follow its own guidance for a rural mortgage program, taking years to foreclose on delinquent loans. As a result, 55 Maine borrowers racked up, on average, $110,000 in additional debt before the agency moved to take the homes.

    by Sawyer Loftus, Bangor Daily News,

    Local Reporting Network

    He Came to the U.S. to Support His Sick Child. He Was Detained. Then He Disappeared.

    Like most of the more than 230 Venezuelan men deported to a Salvadoran prison, José Manuel Ramos Bastidas had followed U.S. immigration rules. Then Trump rewrote them.

    by Melissa Sanchez, ProPublica; Perla Trevizo, ProPublica and The Texas Tribune; Mica Rosenberg and Jeff Ernsthausen, ProPublica; Ronna Rísquez, Alianza Rebelde Investiga; and Adrián González, Cazadores de Fake News,

    Trump Administration Prepares to Drop Seven Major Housing Discrimination Cases

    Federal housing officials spent years investigating cities from Chicago to Memphis to Corpus Christi for putting industrial plants and unwanted facilities in poor, nonwhite neighborhoods. Now, under Trump, the agency plans to drop the cases.

    by Jesse Coburn,

    The Most Interesting Email I Ever Received: Remembering the Incredible Life of DIY Geneticist Jill Viles

    In 2013, ProPublica reporter David Epstein was contacted by a woman with a wild story and a batch of photos she believed were clues to the mystery of her condition. Turns out, she was right.

    by David Epstein,

    RFK Jr. Wants to Change a Program That Stopped Vaccine Makers From Leaving the U.S. Market. They Could Flee Again.

    The Vaccine Injury Compensation Program stabilizes the nation’s childhood immunization system while paying those harmed by rare side effects. If the program topples, it could threaten access to vaccines.

    by Patricia Callahan,