Dear Reader,
As the region’s premier outlet for accountability stories, we have a 10-year history of journalism that investigates how public funds are being used. It’s part of our mission because we believe you have the right to know. In this time of changing leadership and pressing priorities, we’re not resting on our laurels.
Over the coming months, we’ll be working on important accountability journalism, including these three projects:
- Our annual explainers on the salaries of public employees with the city, county and state. We pay special attention to overtime costs, workforce demographics, the costs of various departments and who are the highest-paid individuals. PublicSource also makes the data available to you. In one of last year’s pieces, we reported that Allegheny County paid $29.2 million in overtime to its employees in 2020.
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- PublicSource is analyzing changes in property assessments in Allegheny County and how they affect both communities and taxpayers.
- We’ll also be examining Pittsburgh Public Schools’ finances and their efforts to address a $39 million budget deficit, which has included discussions about potential school closures.Â
This work is important, but it’s also labor intensive. It takes time and dedication to pore through spreadsheets and documents, identify trends and changes, interview the decision-makers and those affected — and then put it all in context for members of the public. Support from our readers makes this vitally important work possible. Can you chip in $25 to help sustain stories like these, or even better, start a recurring gift of $5 or more a month?Â
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To be removed from fundraising messages, please email [email protected]. Donations by check can be made payable to PublicSource and mailed to 1936 Fifth Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15219. So that we can credit you properly, please include your email address with your gift.
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