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Debt

What Americans Owe and Why

145 stories published since 2015

As Illinois Expands Gambling, It Will Also Try to Determine How Many Gambling Addicts It Has

Anatomy of the Gambling Bill

Illinois Is Poised to Become the Gambling Capital of the Midwest

Of Course This Happened in Illinois. Why Wouldn’t It?

Riverboat Gambling Eyes a Move to Dry Land, Sports Teams Backing Sports Betting and Other Quiet Expansions

Many People are Too Broke for Bankruptcy. A New Report Suggests Some Fixes.

The Missing Millions: Some States Are Still Waiting for the Gambling Windfall

Legalized Betting Could Change How We Watch Sports

The Ticket Trap: Front to Back

How Has the “Crack Cocaine of Gambling” Affected Illinois? The State Hasn’t Bothered to Check.

Everybody in Chicago’s Mayor’s Race Says They Want Ticket Reform

How Illinois Bet on Video Gambling and Lost

Do You Know Someone Struggling With Video Gambling? ​Help Us Understand Video Slot and Poker Addiction in Illinois.

How We Analyzed Video Gambling in Illinois

Feeling Trapped by Vehicle Tickets? Let’s Talk About It — Live

How to Use the Ticket Trap, Our New Database That Lets You Explore How Chicago Tickets Motorists and Collects Debt

The Ticket Trap

We Want to Hear About Your Experiences With Vehicle Tickets, So We Created a Facebook Group

Chicago Task Force Will Take on Ticket and Debt Collection Reform

Chicago Throws Out 23,000 Duplicate Tickets Issued Since 1992 to Motorists Who Didn’t Have Vehicle Stickers

Chicago City Council Approves Modest First Reforms on Ticketing and Debt

Top Chicago Alderman Adds to Growing Momentum for Ticket and Debt Reform

Chicago Considers Wiping Away Old Ticket Debt for Motorists Who File for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

Chicago Alderman Proposes Reining in Ticket Penalties That Drove Thousands of Black Motorists Into Debt

Chicago City Clerk Calls for Reforms of Vehicle Sticker Program

Download Chicago’s Parking Ticket Data Yourself

What’s the City of Chicago Doing About Its Problem With Duplicate Sticker Tickets?

The “Terrible” Consequences of Chicago’s Ticketing Policies

Chicago Hiked the Cost of Vehicle City Sticker Violations to Boost Revenue. But It’s Driven More Low-Income, Black Motorists Into Debt.

How ProPublica Illinois and WBEZ Worked Together to Find Thousands of Duplicate Tickets in Chicago

Chicago Begins To Rethink How Bankruptcy Lawyers Get Paid

Some States No Longer Suspend Driver’s Licenses for Unpaid Fines. Will Illinois Join Them?

She Owed $102,158.40 in Unpaid Tickets, but She’s Not in the Story

How Chicago Ticket Debt Sends Black Motorists Into Bankruptcy

The Many Roads to Bankruptcy

Without Fanfare, Equifax Makes Bankruptcy Change That Affects Hundreds of Thousands

Chicago’s Bankruptcy Boom

Bankruptcy: What’s the Difference Between Chapter 7 and Chapter 13?

Data Analysis: Bankruptcy and Race in America

In the South, Bankruptcy Is Different, Especially for Black Debtors

Have You Seriously Considered Filing for Bankruptcy?

How the Bankruptcy System Is Failing Black Americans

What Can Be Done Right Now to Fix the Legal System for Debt Collection

How We Analyzed Racial Disparity in Debt Collection Lawsuits

The Color of Debt: How Collection Suits Squeeze Black Neighborhoods