Impact has been at the core of ProPublica’s mission since we launched in 2008, and it remains the principal yardstick for our success today. Our investigative journalism does more than expose wrongdoing and injustice; we intend for it to spark real-world change.
We’ve written a whole white paper on the topic, and examples of how our stories have produced such change — from the resignation of corrupt officials to the passage of new laws — are compiled in our annual reports. On this page, you’ll find our reporting on the impact of our work.
Featured Impact
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Lawmakers in at Least Seven States Seek Expanded Abortion Access
Some of the bills were filed in direct response to ProPublica’s reporting on the fatal consequences of abortion bans.
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Justice Department Sues Six of the Nation’s Largest Landlords in Effort to Stop Alleged Price-Fixing in Rental Markets
Federal prosecutors allege that the landlords have used RealPage pricing software to collude and artificially raise rents. The legal action is the latest development stemming from a 2022 ProPublica investigation.
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EPA Finalizes New Standards for Cancer-Causing Chemicals
The regulation specifically targets ethylene oxide, which a ProPublica analysis found was the single biggest contributor to excess industrial cancer risk from air pollutants nationwide.
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Idaho Legislature Approves $2 Billion for Schools to Repair and Replace Aging Buildings
The funding was pledged by Gov. Brad Little after an Idaho Statesman and ProPublica investigation showed students learning in poor conditions. Educators say it’s only a start to fixing decades-old problems.
More Impact
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Líderes en Puerto Rico piden investigar presunta trama electoral después de reportaje de ProPublica
Un legislador dijo que la Cámara de Representantes tiene “un deber ineludible de investigar” después de que ProPublica reveló cómo se les dijo a los fiscales que dejaran de indagar en si la trama de drogas por votos estaba conectada a la gobernadora.
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Puerto Rico Lawmakers Call for Investigation Into Alleged Drugs-for-Votes Scheme After ProPublica Report
One said the territory’s House has “an inescapable duty to investigate” after the ProPublica report revealed how federal prosecutors had been told to stop looking into whether the scheme was linked to the island's newly elected governor.
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Lawmakers Demand Answers About Growing Number of Unfixed Mistakes on Credit Reports
Four senators wrote letters to Experian and TransUnion, requesting information on the companies’ dispute handling processes after ProPublica revealed they have been dismissing more consumer complaints without providing help.
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Connecticut Senate Approves More Towing Reforms, Expanding on Landmark 2025 Legislation
The bill, which follows a Connecticut Mirror and ProPublica investigation, would limit when towing companies can sell cars and would create an online portal to track towed cars.
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Texas Medical Board Sanctions Three Doctors for Delayed Care That Led to the Deaths of Two Pregnant Women
Porsha Ngumezi and Nevaeh Crain died during miscarriages in Texas. The state’s medical board ruled that the doctors’ substandard care led to the deaths and ordered them to complete extra training.
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Colorado Marijuana Regulators Pledge Crackdown on Intoxicating Hemp
Citing potential tax avoidance and “serious risks to public safety,” the Marijuana Enforcement Division warned companies about selling illegal chemically converted hemp as marijuana.
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Tennessee Lawmakers Pass Fix to School Threats Law After Kids Were Arrested for Jokes and Misunderstandings
Tennessee lawmakers voted to change a controversial law so school officials will now only have to report threats they deem “credible.” It comes after an investigation by ProPublica and WPLN that showed children were wrongly ensnared by the legislation.
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Utah Bans Polygraph Tests for Those Reporting Sexual Assault
A state legislator was moved to sponsor the bill — now signed into law — following a Salt Lake Tribune-ProPublica investigation that showed how polygraphs can retraumatize sexual abuse victims.
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How American Kids Have Been Collateral Damage in Trump’s Immigration Crackdown
Democrats in the House and Senate are digging into the treatment, detention and sometimes even deportation of American children at the hands of immigration agents. Families featured in ProPublica’s reporting will be speaking at a forum.
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Report Confirms Columbia Ignored Decades of Doctor’s Sexual Abuse
Columbia commissioned the report after ProPublica’s investigation into how the university protected former OB-GYN Robert Hadden. The school also announced the resignation of two top doctors who were involved in allowing Hadden to continue practicing.
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Native Students Receive Excessive Discipline in This New Mexico School District, Report Finds
The Navajo Nation report echoes a 2022 investigation by New Mexico In Depth and ProPublica that found Indigenous students were punished more harshly than other students in the state’s Gallup-McKinley school district.
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New York Attorney General Is Investigating Columbia for Allowing Predatory Doctor to See Patients Despite Warnings
In 2023, ProPublica revealed that Columbia University had ignored women who accused OB-GYN Robert Hadden of sexual assault, enabling the doctor's abuse for decades. Survivors say they hope school officials will now be held accountable.
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ProPublica Wins Lawsuit Over Access to Court Records in U.S. Navy Cases
A judge ruled that the Navy’s long-standing policy to withhold records from its criminal trials violated the First Amendment.
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Senate Leaders Warn Defense Department About Procuring Generic Drugs Overseas
In a letter that cited ProPublica’s reporting, Sens. Rick Scott and Kirsten Gillibrand asked Secretary Pete Hegseth for more information about the military’s drug supply and its reliance on foreign manufacturers.
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Democrats Demand Answers for Federal Prison Staffing Shortage After Corrections Officers Flee for ICE Jobs
Citing a ProPublica investigation that found that workers at federal lockups had been lured away to ICE, lawmakers asked how the Federal Bureau of Prisons plans to address the agency’s “unsafe conditions” and “pervasive” shortages of critical staff.
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U.S. Forest Service Stops Issuing Firefighter Pants That Contain PFAS, Following ProPublica’s Reporting
Officials at the agency knew about the use of potentially dangerous “forever chemicals” in protective gear years before publicly acknowledging the issue, according to emails obtained by ProPublica.
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Colorado Marijuana Regulators Consider Major Changes to How Labs Test for Contaminants
Critics say the current method of allowing manufacturers to choose the samples they send to labs is vulnerable to abuse and allows contaminated products to reach dispensaries.
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The Clear Labels Act Would Change What You Know About Your Prescription Medication
The bill, introduced by Sens. Rick Scott and Kirsten Gillibrand, follows a bipartisan investigation that cited ProPublica’s reporting on dangerous foreign drugmakers and the medicine they continued to sell in the U.S.
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After Years of Silence, Texas Medical Board Issues Training for Doctors on How to Legally Provide Abortions
The course includes examples of when abortion is permitted to protect the life of the patient, but many experts say the complications women face in pregnancy are impossible to capture in a brief presentation.
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We Found New York’s Guardianship System in Shambles. Now State Lawmakers Say They Have a Plan to Help Fix It.
Two years after ProPublica first documented the state’s dire shortage of guardians — and the substandard care some provide — lawmakers are pitching a $15 million-per-year fix. It’s unclear whether the law has the governor’s support.