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Nov 19

2024

Buffalo, Rochester fail transparency test

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The cities of Buffalo and Rochester have received failing grades for a lack of transparency involving tax breaks given to the owners of old commercial buildings converted to new uses. The 485-a program is often used to retrofit office buildings into mixed uses that include housing and retail. The report by Good Jobs First found that the granting of the tax breaks is done by bureaucrats without any public review and the cities don’t readily disclose the award.  The report, however, gave high grades to the industrial development agencies in the cities of Utica, Albany and Syracuse. Transparency improves public[...]

Posted 5 months ago

Nov 19

2024

Investigative Post, Rochester D&C to share stories

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The Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, owned by Gannett Co. Inc., and Investigative Post, a nonprofit investigative reporting center based in Buffalo, have entered into a content sharing agreement. The two news organizations will share selected stories of interest to their respective readers. The two news organizations at times will publish accountability journalism created by the other. In the case of the D&C, this would include reporting created in Rochester or by the newspaper’s New York State Team. “We’re always looking for ways to give our readers more enterprise stories, and the D&C’s reporting in upstate New York is a good source for that type of[...]

Posted 5 months ago

Nov 17

2024

Way too many people can’t read – adults and kids

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The numbers are shocking. “Illiteracy has become such a serious problem in our country that 130 million adults are now unable to read a simple story to their children,” reports the National Literacy Institute. That’s half the adult population.  That same half has difficulty performing such basic tasks such as reading the labels of their prescription drugs. A little more than half of adults read below a sixth grade reading level. One in five are flat out illiterate. A majority of Americans don’t read a single book through the course of a year. Only one-in-three kids read for pleasure. Etc.[...]

Posted 5 months ago

Nov 15

2024

Why Smart Finance Uses Blockchain Technology

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Blockchain technology is becoming a crucial part of modern finance, offering a new way to handle transactions, reduce fraud, and increase transparency. With its decentralized and secure nature, blockchain is changing the way financial systems operate.  Smart finance, which uses technology to optimize financial services, is tapping into blockchain’s potential to improve processes and create new opportunities. From enhancing security to transforming industries like sports betting, blockchain is playing a vital role in the evolution of finance. In this article, we’ll explore how blockchain is helping smart finance and why it’s becoming so essential. The Role of Blockchain in Reducing[...]

Posted 6 months ago

Nov 14

2024

How Erie County voted for president

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The Democratic presidential ticket’s margin of victory in Erie County was provided by voters in the City of Buffalo. Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz won the county by 42,243 votes, according to the current count. She won Buffalo by 46,765, snagging more than three-quarters of the ballots cast by city voters. The Democrats also won by lesser but still substantial margins in the towns of Amherst, Tonawanda and Aurora, and squeaked out victories in Cheektowaga and Lackawanna. The rest of the county registered various shades of red, ranging from pinkish communities like Orchard Park, Hamburg and[...]

Posted 6 months ago

Nov 13

2024

Cheektowaga’s faded blue electorate

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As goes Cheektowaga, so goes the nation, former Buffalo News political reporter Bob McCarthy likes to say.  The McCarthy maxim held true in 2016, when Cheektowaga voters broke by the thinnest of margins for Republican Donald Trump, and in 2020, when they favored Democrat Joe Biden. This year the results were mixed: The Democratic presidential candidate won the town but lost the race nationwide. However, Republicans made rare and important gains in local races. Unofficial results show Democrat Kamala Harris carrying Cheektowaga by about 4 percentage points, or just shy of 1,700 votes. Her margin of victory in the town[...]

Posted 6 months ago

Nov 13

2024

Cryptocurrency and Financial Inclusion: Bridging the Gap

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Let’s be real — in today’s world, you’d think everyone has easy access to banks, loans, and financial services, right? But that’s far from the truth. Believe it or not, around 1.4 billion adults globally don’t have a bank account (World Bank, 2022). Some folks live too far from the nearest branch, others don’t trust traditional banks, and plenty just can’t cough up the fees that come with keeping an account open. And here’s where things get frustrating: without access to basic banking, people can’t save money safely, get credit, or invest in their future. It locks them out of[...]

Posted 6 months ago

Nov 12

2024

Time to support Investigative Post

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I’ll get right to the point: As a nonprofit newsroom, Investigative Post depends on community support to fund our operation. Not advertisers, not subscribers, but donors.  People like you, dear reader. We’re in the midst of our annual drive, during which most of our smaller donors (under $1,000) contribute. This year, we’re again matching donations of up to $1,000 thanks to the generosity of national foundations providing funds under NewsMatch and local companies, including Try-It Distributing. Donors have multiple options. You can make a one-time or monthly contribution. You can do so online or by mailing us a check. (Details[...]

Posted 6 months ago
Investigative Post