Jeremy Schwartz

Reporter

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Jeremy Schwartz is an investigative reporter for the ProPublica-Texas Tribune Investigative Initiative. He’s been a watchdog reporter in Texas for nearly a decade for the Austin American-Statesman and USA Today Network. His work has resulted in the overhaul of Texas’ inspection process for farmworker housing, sparked Congressional investigations of a failed Department of Veterans Affairs research program and uncovered misleading border arrest and drug seizure statistics maintained by the Texas Department of Public Safety. Schwartz has won the National Association of Hispanic Journalists’ Latino Issues award for his 2017 investigation into the political underrepresentation of Latinos in Texas cities and counties, and the Headliners Foundation of Texas Reporter of the Year award, among other honors. He’s previously reported on Latin America from Mexico City.

“I Refuse to Be Told What to Do”: Facebook Posts Show a Conservative School Board Member Rejecting Extremism

When reporter Jeremy Schwartz first learned of a local Texas activist who ran for school board on a far-right education platform, she seemed to embody the extremist movement he’d covered since 2021. Then her Facebook posts took a surprising turn.

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Former Far-Right Hard-Liner Says Billionaires Are Using School Board Races to Sow Distrust in Public Education

The largesse from billionaires Tim Dunn and brothers Farris and Dan Wilks has made its way into local politics across Texas. Courtney Gore, a Republican school board member in Granbury, says it’s part of their strategy to build support for vouchers.

She Campaigned for a Texas School Board Seat as a GOP Hard-Liner. Now She’s Rejecting Her Party’s Extremism.

Courtney Gore, a Granbury ISD school board member, has disavowed the far-right platform she campaigned on after finding no evidence that students were being indoctrinated by the district’s curriculum. Her defiance has brought her backlash.

Texas Appeals Court Throws Out Defamation Lawsuit Against ProPublica, Houston Chronicle

The news outlets’ 2018 investigation into famed Houston heart surgeon Bud Frazier provided a “fair, true, and impartial account,” the court said in its ruling, potentially bringing a close to the nearly six-year legal battle.

Texas School Districts Violated a Law Intended to Add Transparency to Local Elections

ProPublica and The Texas Tribune analyzed 35 Texas school districts that held trustee elections last fall and found none that posted all of the required campaign finance records.

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A Texas Billionaire’s Associates Are Trying to Sink a School Tax Election via Their Dark Money Nonprofit

Tim Dunn’s public policy groups have helped ensure that tax hike language is attached to school bonds in the state. Now, that language is being used to undercut support for a bond in his hometown of Midland.

Book Bans in Texas Spread as New State Law Takes Effect

As Texas enters its third straight school year of coordinated book banning activity, a growing number of districts are targeting library books. Caught in the dragnet: books featuring a “naked” crayon and one with a cartoon butt.

“The Reporting Gave a Number of Us Pause”: Pennsylvania Lawmakers Rethink Funding for Child ID Kits After Investigation

A bill that would require purchasing the kits is facing key opposition after ProPublica and The Texas Tribune found no evidence that they’d ever been used to find a missing child. The probe previously spurred Texas to strip millions in funding.

Texas Pulls Funding for Child ID Kits After Investigation Finds Little Evidence of Their Effectiveness

Lawmakers were slated to spend millions of taxpayer dollars for the kits but changed course after a series of revelations in a ProPublica and Texas Tribune investigation.

Texas Legislature Closes Gun Background Check Loophole

State lawmakers passed a bill requiring courts to report involuntary mental health hospitalizations of juveniles for inclusion in the federal gun background check system. The law closes a gap revealed by ProPublica and The Texas Tribune in 2022.

A Former NFL Player Persuaded Politicians That His Child ID Kits Help Find Missing Kids. There’s No Evidence They Do.

At least 11 states have agreed to distribute fingerprinting kits sold by Kenny Hansmire’s National Child Identification Program. Some are spending millions even though similar kits are available for free.

Trio of Texas Churches Donated to Political Candidate Despite Clear IRS Prohibition

A candidate for the Abilene, Texas, City Council said that three churches made an honest mistake by donating to his campaign and that he is returning the money. The race has been beset by allegations of electioneering by churches.

Closing Critical Gun Background Check Loophole Gains Bipartisan Support in Texas

After a ProPublica-Texas Tribune investigation found courts failed to report juvenile mental health hospitalizations to the federal firearm background check system, lawmakers from both parties are backing bills to ensure compliance with the law.

A Texas Superintendent Ordered School Librarians to Remove LGBTQ Books. Now the Federal Government Is Investigating.

The Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights has opened what appears to be the first-of-its-kind investigation into the Granbury Independent School District after it banned school library books dealing with sexuality and gender.

DOJ Tried to Hide Report Warning That Private Border Wall in Texas Could Collapse

The report confirms a ProPublica and Texas Tribune investigation that found the privately built fencing could collapse during major flooding. The federal government resisted making the findings public for more than a year.

These 20 Churches Supported Political Candidates. Experts Say They Violated Federal Law.

Churches aren’t supposed to endorse political candidates, according to IRS rules. Across the country, churches appear to be doing so anyway.

Texas Churches Violate the Law Ahead of Tuesday’s Election, Experts Say

Churches in Texas invited Beto O’Rourke and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to speak to their congregations before the 2022 midterms, raising questions about the effectiveness of the Johnson Amendment.

Churches Are Breaking the Law by Endorsing in Elections, Experts Say. The IRS Looks the Other Way.

For nearly 70 years, federal law has barred churches from directly involving themselves in political campaigns, but the IRS has largely abdicated its enforcement responsibilities as churches have become more brazen about publicly backing candidates.

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