The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "Monmouth County" ...
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"Fighting New Jersey's Tax Crush"
The Abury Park Press takes an in-depth look at the tax system in New Jersey. Based on empirical evidence, reporters found New Jersey's system to have the highest costs in the nation due to property taxes being based on the "what the town says" is the worth of your house. Low- and middle-income homes are paying more than the wealthy, and many businesses are being forced to close or move out of the state due to tax increases.
Tags: Chris Christie; Ortley Beach; Ocean County Board of Taxation; Monmouth County; Lacey Tax Collector; Keyport; Chris Daggett; Jon S. Corzine; New Jersey State League of Municipalities
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Close Connections
The Asbury Park Press' investigations of municipal officials found that politically powerful attorneys had almost free reign to double bill and over bill the agencies they were supposed to serve. An investigation of the township attorney, who is the top elected Republican in the state, found that he double billed the city by more than $8,000. He initially said the double-billing was not his responsibility, but later admitted it was an accident. The Press found that the project in which the double-billing occurred was part of an unfinished seven-year effort to rewrite the city's ordinances. The senator charged more than $100,000 for the incomplete work, although similar projects cost a quarter as much and can take months, not years, to finish. Close examination of these billing records for the ordinance re-writing project showed his bills included rewrites of ordinances that don't exist, and repeated rewrites of ordinances that were little more than a paragraph or two long.
Tags: Marlboro Township-New Jersey; Council Members; Mayor Matthew V. Scannapieco; developers; Anthony Spalliero; Senator John O. Bennett III; political contributions; double-billing; town budget; ordinances; legal invoice; Monmouth County; campaign contributions; Center for Responsive Politics Marlboro Cultural and Improvement Fund; Keansburg Board of Education; New Jersey State Commission of Investigation; reform bill; elected officials
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Dream merchants
This Asbury Park Press series investigates real estate deals done by Thomas Fauntleroy and a group of associates in depressed areas of Monmouth County, NJ. They sold these homes to minority buyers for a lot more than what they paid and also directed them to get mortages from Fauntleroy's brother. The homes were not only overpriced but the value of them was less than the loan amounts approved for buyers. There were numerous Federal Housing Association violations including FHA-insured loans to Fauntleroy and associates.
Tags: investment properties; deed and mortgage records; Mortgage Acceptance
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No title (id: 5665)
Asbury Park Press evaluates Superior Court judges in two counties; finds some judges are considered less than adequate in legal knowledge by local lawyers; discovers a shoplifter spent 16 months in jail before an appeals court ruled there was insufficient evidence to convict him, Sept. 11, 1988.
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No title (id: 2724)
Asbury Park Press story on patronage in county government identifies officeholders, relatives and party workers whose political connections helped them get on the Monmouth County payroll, Oct. 25, 1984.
Tags: None