"Following the Money: How TPIA Requests Unwound $350 Million in Questionable Housing Deals"
Investigative CATEGORY — SHOWCASE Silver winner
KRIS 6 News
Rachel Denny Clow, Suzanne Stevens, Erin Holly, Lea Zora Scruggs
05/05/2025
This investigation demonstrates exceptional impact, thoroughness, and innovation required for the Showcase Investigative Award.
Significant Impact on Texas Government: Our reporting triggered unprecedented accountability—a CEO terminated, $350 million in illegal deals voided, $7.4 million in tax revenue preserved annually, new leadership installed, and a board vote that forced a government entity to publicly acknowledge Open Meetings Act violations.
Innovation and Thoroughness in Presentation: We employed multi-platform storytelling combining investigative TV packages, comprehensive web articles, and sustained follow-up coverage (13+ stories over seven months) tracking each development and reform implementation.
Rigorous News Gathering Process: Seven months of aggressive TPIA requests yielded executive compensation records, hours of audio recordings, financial documents, and contracts. We invested dozens of hours comparing audio recordings to written minutes line-by-line, cross-referencing Housing Authority bylaws with Texas statutes and Attorney General opinions, analyzing rental market data, and consulting legal experts—all while overcoming official resistance and deliberately obscured information. Difficulty: This investigation required overcoming active resistance from officials, mastering complex legal frameworks (Open Meetings Act, housing authority statutes, public-private partnerships), and making intricate financial and legal matters accessible to our audience while maintaining absolute accuracy.
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Submitted by Rachel Clow.