Hummel Report
 The Hummel Reportwith Jim Hummel Exposing corruption in Southern New England. The Hummel Report airs every Thursday, with exclusive video, on 630WPRO.COM |
The Hummel Report: Family Plan
This week for theHummel Report The Fire Marshall in Pawtucket is now under investigation by the city's police department after Jim Hummel discovers he put his girlfriend's daughter on his taxpayer-funded Blue Cross family plan in 2011. Hear the fire marshal's explanation - and the mayor's reaction to what we found.
The Hummel Report: Spotlight: Discovering Their Potential
This week for theHummel Report we go inside a school like no other in Rhode Island: a non-profit gender-specific middle school for 60 girls, grades 5-8, whose families are living near the poverty-level - many with single-parent households. And as Jim Hummel finds, the private non-denominational academy has seen impressive results.
The Hummel Report: The Cost of Affordable
This week for theHummel Report Affordable housing is a hot-button issue for several communities in Rhode Island, some struggling to meet state mandates set nearly a decade ago. This week Jim Hummel looks at one affluent community where affordable housing has become a controversial topic - but not for the reasons you might think.
The Hummel Report: Third Anniversary
This week for theHummel Report This week we mark the 3rd anniversary of The Hummel Report with new information on half a dozen of our investigations - including the conclusion to our first big series of stories in early 2010 that is now sending one corrupt politician to federal prison.
The Hummel Report: Spotlight- For The Families
This week for theHummel Report Jim Hummel takes us inside a place that deals with some of the toughest cases in the state.
The Hummel Report: Phantom Address
This week for theHummel Report It is a taxpayer-funded loan program run by the city of Providence - designed to help Providence businesses that can't get traditional financing. So how did a company with no Providence connection score a loan?
The Hummel Report: From There to Here
This week for theHummel Report traces how Mayor Moreau went from a politician with an iron grip on his city, to a soon-to-convicted felon facing prison time.
The Hummel Report: Day and Night...
This week for theHummel Report Firefighters in North Kingstown are now fighting a new 24-hour work schedule ordered by the town that lengthens not only their work day, but significantly increases the number of hours they have to put in every week. Is
The Hummel Report: Spotlight- A Refuge for Children
This week for theHummel Report Jim Hummel takes us inside a place that deals with some of the toughest cases in the state.
The Hummel Report: Thanks- but no thanks...
This week for theHummel Report Avery Kirby invented a tray insert for his hospital-issued walker after being treated for a stroke at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Providence. The tray allows him to carry items, has a drink holder and a place for his cane. With the help of some islanders and his son, Kirby built 50 trays to give to his fellow veterans at hospital. But the VA won't accept them. This week Jim Hummel finds out why, and travels to the island for a first-hand look at the tray - which has received a patent from the government.
The Hummel Report: Protecting the Investment
This week for theHummel Report Taxpayers in Providence have spent millions of dollars to repair and repave several high-profile and high-traffic streets in the city, including one that has a newly-created bicycle lane. So why has a utility company targeted them for additional work already?
The Hummel Report: Spotlight- More Than a Meal
This week for theHummel Report Jim Hummel spotlights a program that feeds the homeless and goes way beyond the meal.
The Hummel Report: A Lot of Green
This week for the Hummel Report Jim Hummel hears from a North Kingstown woman who wants to know why the state is spending money on landscaping when the Department of Transportation struggles every year to fund other projects. And we have the response from D.O.T.
The Hummel Report: Mopping Up
This week for the Hummel Report Jim Hummel finds information showing that the board overseeing a taxpayer-funded loan program for Providence businesses has written off millions of dollars in bad loans - two-thirds made during the administration of former Mayor David Cicilline.
The Hummel Report: Spotlight- Building a Family
This week for Hummel Report Jim Hummel profiles an inner-city teacher and wrestling coach who is going above and beyond, rewriting the job description of what it is to work with students and athletes. Meet him - and the team he's turned into a family. .
The Hummel Report: Murky waters
This week for the Hummel Report Jim Hummel talks with the people living just east of the airport, who say years of deicing fluid runoff have contaminated Warwick Pond. And they want to know what the Department of Environmental Management is doing about it.
The Hummel Report: The Math of a Merger
This week for the Hummel Report Jim Hummel talks this week with the a coventry fire chief - and a local businessman looking for accountability in increased spending after a district merger.
The Hummel Report: Spotlight- Food Rescue
This week for Hummel Report The Hummel Spotlight focuses on two men who came out retirement five years ago and created an organization that re-routes that food to the tables of hungry people. .
The Hummel Report: Open Space
This week for the Hummel Report Jim Hummel sits down with those two former lawmakers about what they proposed and about how the state might look if their idea hadn't panned out. .
The Hummel Report: Communication Breakdown
This week for the Hummel Report City Council members in Providence receive a yearly salary, health care benefits and a pension if they want in on it - and something that until recently has flown largely under the public radar: a Smart Phone, courtesy of the taxpayers.
The Hummel Report : Tale of the Turbines
This week for the Hummel Report Jim Hummel sits down with the man overseeing the project for the Narragansett Bay Commission and finds he expects the turbines to provide 40 percent of the facility's electric power when they go online this summer.
The Hummel Report: All Aboard?
This week for the Hummel Report Jim Hummel sits down with the director of the Rhode Island Department of Transportation to talk about the facility - and ongoing operational costs taxpayers could be on the hook for if it's not as successful as officials are predicting.
The Hummel Report: Too Close for Comfort?
This week for the Hummel Report Four years ago Rhode Island passed a law making it a felony for registered sex offenders to live within 300 feet of any public or private school. But a three-month investigation by The Hummel Report found more than a dozen sex offenders in Providence listing addresses within the 300 feet.
The Hummel Report: Standard Deduction
This week for the Hummel Report Taxpayers filing in Rhode Island face huge changes this year. Jim Hummel finds that the losers include those with huge medical bills - who now can't fully claim them as a deduction.
Hummel Report: Last Chance?
This week for the Hummel Report Last fall a parking enforcement officer in Providence instigated a profanity-filled argument with a motorist on Federal Hill. It wasn't the first time.
Hummel Report: Quarterly Update
This week for the Hummel Report Jim Hummel has developments on half a dozen investigations, including one we first brought you nearly two years ago.
Hummel Report: EZ Money
This week for the Hummel Report if you're one of the motorists who bought an EZ Pass transponder directly from the manufacturer, Jim Hummel finds there may be a surprise on your first bill.
Hummel Report: The Union Perspective
This week for the Hummel Report Jim Hummel sits down with two veteran union leaders for their perspective on the changes - and the pension system going forward.
Hummel Report: A Question of Enforcement
This week for the Hummel Report Jim Hummel investigates questions about a scrap yard adjacent to the river cited repeatedly for storm water and hazardous waste violations.
Hummel Report: In Limbo
This week for the Hummel Report A few months ago the state installed a controlled-access gate at one of the parking lots adjacent to the Rhode Island State House. This week Jim Hummel talks with the state official overseeing the project - and a state senator who says government needs to treat every tax dollar as carefully as the taxpayers do themselves.
Hummel Report: Chained In
This week for the Hummel Report The Station Nightclub Fire left many Rhode Islanders acutely aware of entrance and exit doors. This week: we have undercover video of a chained fire exit at a charter school in Cranston - with students just steps away down the hall.
Hummel Report: The Hidden Truth
This week for the Hummel Report the president of the company that was being blamed by the Rhode Island Department of Transportation talks publicly with Jim Hummel, for the first time, about a confidential report that now puts the blame on the D.O.T., costing taxpayers millions of extra dollars.
Hummel Report: The First Year
This week for the Hummel Report Providence Mayor Angel Taveras looks back on his first year in office: the challenges and surprises, the successes and setbacks, as he answers the critics who thought he might not be tough enough to get it all done. And he tells Jim Hummel why he hasn't criticized his predecessor David Cicilline - when many others have.
Hummel Report: That's a Wrap for 2011
This week for the Hummel Report We take a look back at a very busy year for the Hummel Report. Jim Hummel has new information on a handful of investigations - from a cracked bridge in Warren to defective engines on high-priced search and rescue boats.
Hummel Report: Pro Bono
This week for the Hummel Report we take a break from government waste and the multitude of problems in Rhode Island - to profile an organization that over the past two decades has provided millions in free dental work.
Hummel Report: The Cost of Transparency
This week for the Hummel Report takes a closer look at the embattled Bristol County Water Authority, which is facing allegations of mismanagement following a hefty rate increase last year.
Hummel Report: An Island Unto Itself
This week for the Hummel Report the controversy over a trash-removal contract on Block Island moves to the mainland.
Hummel Report: Risky Business
This week for the Hummel Report a six-month investigation into a taxpayer-funded business loan program run by the city of Providence.
Hummel Report: The Bridge to...
The Bridge to....The Quonset Business Park is one of the few bright spots for economic development in Rhode Island these days, attracting new companies and jobs over the past several years.
Hummel Report: Are Fall River change orders political?
This week for the Hummel Report, Jim Hummel questions the mayor of Fall River about road repair money meant for the whole city being used on little-used roads near a political supporter.
Hummel Report: Trash Talk
This week for the Hummel Report, Jim Hummel finds island politics can be just as rough-and-tumble as they are on the mainland, while investigating allegations of a no-bid contract for a lucrative trash-hauling business.
Hummel Report: Disclosure
This week for the Hummel Report, Jim Hummel sits down with a former East Providence council head, and the man who defeated him, to try to explain tax increases that went over estimates and were never publicized.
Hummel Report: New Details
This week for the Hummel Report, Jim Hummel checks in on five ongoing investigations.
Hummel Report: Russian Spy Follow-Up
This week for the Hummel Report, Jim Hummel follows-up on the Russian spy case he investigated earlier this month.
Hummel Report: Quick Start?
This week for the Hummel Report, Jim Hummel investigates what is taking so long and costing so much with the online application for business start-ups put in place by Secretary of State Ralph Mollis more than one year ago.
Hummel Report: Identity Crisis
This week, the Hummel Report discovers the truth about a Russian couple living in Warwick, who were arrested on identity theft and fraud charges.
Hummel Report: A Taxing Situation
This week, the Hummel Report discovers you may already be paying an extra tax - without you or the state knowing it.
Hummel Report: A Matter of Timing...Part 2
This week, the Hummel Report investigates a $4 million state-of-the-art pavilion at one of Rhode Island's most popular beaches right at the height of beach season.
Hummel Report: Details, Details...
This week, the Hummel Report investigates police officers being paid for construction site duties...some that work hard, and others that hardly work.
Hummel Report: Striking a Balance
This week, the Hummel Report investigates the effects stepped-up parking enforcement in Providence is having on local store owners and visitors to the city.
Hummel Report: Rough Waters
This week, the Hummel Report investigates four boats purchased with federal tax money for the Marine Strike Team, as part of Homeland Security for the Port of Providence and Narragansett Bay, but have had recurring, costly problems.
Hummel Report: Another Way
This week, the Hummel Report investigates the state-appointed receiver overseeing Central Falls' finances and said to be moving the community closer to bankruptcy. Jim Hummel sits down with a man who is well acquainted with government in Central Falls, serving as city clerk, councilman and mayor.
Hummel Report: A Matter of Timing
This week, the Hummel Report investigates why Newport has decided to begin a downtown contruction projected at the height of tourist season. Jim Hummel talks to business owners and the person overseeing the project about the timing for construction.
Hummel Report: Mid-year Update
This week, the Hummel Report gives a mid-year update on developments in Rehoboth, changes in the state's 911 center and more. Jim Hummel has the latest information.
Hummel Report: Don't Count On It
This week, the Hummel Report investigates why, even with their state email, the vast majority of lawmakers in the General Assembly is so difficult to get in touch with. The Hummel Report puts it to the test.
Hummel Report: Inspect This
This week, the Hummel Report investigates the yearly hot water heater inspections conducted by the state of Rhode Island. The question arises - are they necessary?
Hummel Report: Giving Rhode Island the Business
This week, the Hummel Report investigates the tax credit program incentive for television and film work from out of state and asks the question: What defines a "Rhode Island company"?
Hummel Report: Notice of Violation
This week, the Hummel Report investigates the on-going battle between the town of Portsmouth and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management and their orders for a sections of the community to install sewers - which costs more than $40M.
Hummel Report: A Difficult Path
This week, the Hummel Report examines why the city of Providence has largely ignored an order from the federal government to make its sidewalks more accessible to the handicapped.
Hummel Report: Unfinished Business
This week, Jim Hummel examines why it took the Rehoboth Police Department took seven weeks to produce a report about why Chief Stephan Enos ran a license plate and got street-by-street directions to where the car was registered.
Hummel Report: Better than Expected
This week, Jim Hummel breaks some surprising news about what's been called "the biggest public works project you'll never see."
Hummel Report: 911...Please Hold
This week, the Hummel Report examines what happens when people in Rhode Island called 911...and why thousands of them were put on hold.
Hummel Report: Under the Radar
This week Jim Hummel sifts through all the proposed legislation in Rhode Island so far this year and looks at the bills flying under the public's radar.
Hummel Report: More on Morra
This week Jim Hummel has a few questions for Morra - and finds out that Morra has a few questions for him.
