Five Big Obstacles to Opening Child Care Facilities in Rural Illinois
Though the state faces a critical child care shortage, the government has not made it easy to open new facilities. These are the biggest roadblocks for providers.
About the Local Reporting Network
ProPublica is supporting local and regional newsrooms as they work on important investigative projects affecting their communities. Topics we have covered include environmental pollution, predatory lending, criminal justice, youth and schools, and housing. Our partner, the Anchorage Daily News, won the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for public service for our collaboration. And two other partners, the Palm Beach Post and WPLN-Nashville Public Radio, have been recognized as Pulitzer finalists. In 2024, we launched the 50 State Initiative, a commitment to support accountability reporting projects in every state by the end of 2029.
Hydroelectric Dams on Oregon’s Willamette River Kill Salmon. Congress Says It’s Time to Consider Shutting Them Down.
The newly signed legislation follows reporting from Oregon Public Broadcasting and ProPublica that underscored the risks and costs associated with a plan to migrate salmon past hydroelectric dams using a giant fish collector and tanker trucks.
How Many Cars Have Connecticut Towing Companies Sold? The DMV Can’t Tell Us.
When reporters set out to quantify the impact of a Connecticut law that allows companies to sell some cars they’ve towed after just 15 days, the DMV said records would cost $47,000; it has revised the estimate but hasn't given us the records.
“All Our Future Money Is Gone”: The Impossible Task of Providing Child Care in Rural Illinois
Though the governor promised to make Illinois “the best state” to raise young children, child care continues to disappear. And, as one couple learned, there’s almost no help for those building a child care facility from the ground up.
Partner Newsrooms
These newsrooms and reporters are working with ProPublica on an accountability journalism project.
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Anchorage Daily News
Reporter: Kyle Hopkins
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Arizona Luminaria
Reporter: Rafael Carranza
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Bangor Daily News
Reporter: Sawyer Loftus
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Capitol News Illinois
Reporter: Molly Parker
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The Connecticut Mirror
Reporter: Dave Altimari
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The Current
Reporter: Margaret Coker
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Honolulu Civil Beat
Reporter: Nick Grube
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Idaho Statesman
Reporter: Becca Savransky
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Invisible Institute
Reporter: María Inés Zamudio
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KYUK
Reporter: Emily Schwing
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Michigan Public
Reporter: Beenish Ahmed
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The New York Amsterdam News
Reporter: Ashad Hajela
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New York Focus
Reporter: Spencer Norris
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North Dakota Monitor
Reporter: Jacob Orledge
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Oregon Public Broadcasting
Reporter: Tony Schick
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The Salt Lake Tribune
Reporter: Jessica Schreifels
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The Seattle Times
Reporter: Lulu Ramadan
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Street Roots
Reporter: K. Rambo
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Tennessee Lookout
Reporter: Adam Friedman
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Verite News
Reporter: Richard A. Webster
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Wisconsin Watch
Reporter: Phoebe Petrovic
Featured Series
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Lawless
Sexual Violence in Alaska -
Paradise Lost
Hawaii’s Disappearing Beaches -
State of Denial
Inside Arizona’s Division of Developmental Disabilities -
Defenseless
Investigating the Only State Without Public Defenders -
Birth Rights
Investigating Florida’s NICA Program -
Critical Condition
Investigating the Business of Oklahoma’s Rural Hospitals -
Profiting From the Poor
Inside Memphis’ Debt Machine -
The Cutting
Investigating Industrial Logging in Oregon -
Desperation Town
How Youngstown Gave Itself Away for the Promise of Jobs -
Pollution Profiteers
Inside California’s Toxic Hauling Industry -
Coming to Collect
Investigating Public Housing in Annapolis -
Lessons Lost
How Federal Schools Are Failing Native American Students -
Big Jim
West Virginia’s Conflicted Governor
Other Series
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On the Hook
Investigating Towing Practices in Connecticut -
Faith in Power
The Christian Right’s Attempt to Influence Elections -
Guns in Dangerous Hands
How Tennessee’s Justice System Allows Domestic Abusers to Keep Their Firearms -
Power Grab
How Green Energy Hurts Washington’s Tribes -
No Pressure
The Warning Signs of the Jackson Water Crisis -
Power Hungry
Data Centers vs. Green Energy in Washington -
Division of Families
Georgia’s Housing Policies Separate Parents From Children -
Waiting on Paychecks
New York’s Rampant Wage Theft Goes Unpunished -
Mayor, Judge and Jury
Louisiana’s Mayor’s Courts -
Committed to Jail
How Mississippi Jails People for Mental Illness -
No Defense
How Mississippi Fails Poor Defendants -
State of Disrepair
Inside Idaho’s Crumbling Schools -
Checked Out
LA’s Lost Residential Hotels -
The Title Pawn Trap
High-Interest Title Lending in Georgia -
The Long Burn
The Slow Recovery From New Mexico’s Largest Wildfire -
Homeowner Hell
Investigating Colorado’s Unregulated Homeowners Associations -
Unequal Discipline
Native Students Face Harsh Discipline in New Mexico -
Nowhere to Go
New Mexico’s Troubled Foster Care System -
Culture of Cruelty
Inside Illinois’ Mental Health System -
Disaster After Disaster
Growing Storms, Faltering Aid -
Broken Promises
Salmon Disappear From the Pacific Northwest -
Unguarded
Investigating Risks to the Incarcerated of Illinois -
Crisis Point
How New York Wrecked Mental Health Care for Kids -
The Price Kids Pay
How Schools and Police Work Together to Punish Students -
Flight Risk
Commercial Aviation Safety in Alaska -
Asset Mismanagement
How the Police Take Money and Keep It -
Juvenile Injustice, Tennessee
Where Kids Meet the Rule of Law -
Schoolyard Sheriffs
Policing Kids in Antelope Valley Schools -
Unwatched
A Louisiana Law Department That Polices Itself -
Black Snow
Big Sugar’s Burning Problem -
Gilded Badges
How New Jersey Cops Profit From Police Unions and Avoid Accountability -
Sunken Costs
Coal Ash in Georgia -
Promised Land
A Failed Housing Pledge to Native Hawaiians -
Power Play
The Influence of Virginia’s Biggest Utility -
At a Great Price
The True Cost of the Sears Headquarters Deal -
Polluter’s Paradise
Environmental Impact in Louisiana -
Campus Complicity
Faculty Sexual Misconduct in Illinois -
The Untouchables
Investigating South Carolina’s Judges -
Miswired
How Kentucky Missed the Tech Revolution -
A 911 Emergency
Rhode Island’s Deadly 911 Flaws -
Invisible Walls
Connecticut’s Separate and Unequal Housing -
The Real Bosses of New Jersey
How Unelected Officials Run Your Government -
Locked Down
An Investigation of Mississippi’s Prisons -
Overcorrection
Crisis in California Jails -
Accused in Elkhart
Justice in an Indiana County -
Louisiana’s Ethical Swamp
Lawmakers’ Conflicts of Interest -
A Sick System
Repeat Attacks After Pleading Insanity -
The New Power Brokers
West Virginia’s Natural Gas Industry -
Half-life
Nuke Lab Workers Getting Sick -
HUD’s House of Cards
Public Housing Failures -
Trauma After Tragedy
PTSD in First Responders
