Justin Elliott

Reporter

Photo of Justin Elliott

Justin Elliott has been a reporter with ProPublica since 2012, where he covers business and politics.

In recent years, he was on the team of reporters documenting how the rich avoid taxes for “The Secret IRS Files” series. He co-wrote the story revealing tech mogul Peter Thiel’s multibillion-dollar Roth IRA.

Previously, his work on TurboTax-maker Intuit’s misleading marketing tactics led to a settlement that delivered $141 million back to consumers.

He has produced stories for outlets including The New York Times and NPR, and his work has spurred congressional investigations and changes to federal legislation.

He has won numerous awards, including a Gerald Loeb Award for business journalism, the Selden Ring Award, an Investigative Reporters and Editors award for a series on the American Red Cross and, with the “Trump, Inc.” podcast team, a duPont-Columbia Award. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Brown University in history and classics.

He can be reached on Signal and WhatsApp at 774-826-6240.

Lord of the Roths: How Tech Mogul Peter Thiel Turned a Retirement Account for the Middle Class Into a $5 Billion Tax-Free Piggy Bank

Roth IRAs were intended to help average working Americans save, but IRS records show Thiel and other ultrawealthy investors have used them to amass vast untaxed fortunes.

How to File Your State and Federal Taxes for Free in 2021

TurboTax and other tax prep services advertise themselves as “free,” but we found several ways that they tricked people into paying. Here’s our guide to preparing and filing your 2020 taxes without falling into that trap.

Sheryl Sandberg and Top Facebook Execs Silenced an Enemy of Turkey to Prevent a Hit to the Company’s Business

Amid a 2018 Turkish military campaign, Facebook ultimately sided with Turkey’s demand to block the page of a mostly Kurdish militia. “I am fine with this,” Sandberg wrote.

All a Gig-Economy Pioneer Had to Do Was “Politely Disagree” It Was Violating Federal Law and the Labor Department Walked Away

An Obama administration Labor Department investigator estimated that Arise Virtual Solutions owed its network of 20,000 customer service agents $14.2 million. The company paid nothing.

Georgia Senator David Perdue Privately Pushed for a Tax Break for Rich Sports Teamowners

It’s unclear why Senator Perdue was interested in tax regulation that would impact only a tiny set of the richest Americans. The effort, which wasn’t successful, could have helped several of his donors, including fellow senator Kelly Loeffler.

Una clave que podría decidir la elección: si el Partido Republicano logra impedir que los votantes subsanen boletas rechazadas

Muchos estados permiten a los votantes corregir y entregar de nuevo las boletas que fueron rechazadas por razones técnicas. Se llama “subsanar” votos, y el partido Republicano está intentado impedir que se cuenten porque podrían ayudar a Biden a ganar.

Whether the GOP Can Stop Voters From Legally Fixing Rejected Mail-In Ballots Could Decide the Election

Many states allow voters to fix and resubmit ballots rejected for technical reasons. It’s called “curing” votes, and the GOP is trying to prevent them from being counted because they could help Biden win.

Philadelphia niega la acusación de la campaña de Trump de que prohíbe a los observadores electorales republicanos

La ciudad dice que un video ampliamente visto de un observador electoral del GOP (Partido Republicano) que fue rechazado en un centro de votación es un incidente aislado que ocurrió por confusión sobre las reglas y fue corregido rápidamente.

Philadelphia Denies Trump Campaign Allegation of Banning Republican Poll Watchers

The city says that a widely viewed video of a GOP poll watcher being turned away was an isolated and quickly corrected incident resulting from confusion over the rules.

Susan Collins Backed Down From a Fight With Private Equity. Now They’re Underwriting Her Reelection.

The Maine Republican senator has become the No. 1 Senate recipient of private equity donations.

A worker cleans a walkway railing in the Boston Logan International Airport.

The Trump Administration Allowed Aviation Companies to Take Bailout Funds and Lay Off Workers, Says House Report

Instead of using bailout money to keep workers, at least two companies restored the full pay of their top management.

DOJ Frees Federal Prosecutors to Take Steps That Could Interfere With Elections, Weakening Long-standing Policy

In an internal announcement, the Justice Department created an exception to a decadeslong policy meant to prevent prosecutors from taking overt investigative steps that might affect the outcome of the vote.

The Justice Department May Have Violated Attorney General Barr’s Own Policy Memo

In a memo from May, the attorney general reminded Justice Dept. prosecutors to avoid partisan politics. Then a U.S. attorney in Pennsylvania announced an election investigation that had partisan overtones.

Do You Work in Customer Service? We’d Like to Hear About Your Work-From-Home Jobs.

Have you worked with a contractor such as Arise, Sykes, LiveOps or Concentrix? We want to learn more about how customer service works at big companies like Apple, Intuit, Disney and Airbnb.

Meet the Customer Service Reps for Disney and Airbnb Who Have to Pay to Talk to You

Arise Virtual Solutions, part of the secretive world of work-at-home customer service, helps large corporations shed costs at the expense of workers. Now the pandemic is creating a boom in the industry.

The Big Corporate Rescue and the America That’s Too Small to Save

Girish Patel doubts his small, 20-year-old shop will survive the pandemic economy. Thirty stories above, aerospace company TransDigm has sustained eye-popping profits thanks to steep layoffs and raised over a billion with help from the U.S. government.

The FTC Is Investigating Intuit Over TurboTax Practices

The probe, spurred by ProPublica reporting, centers on whether Intuit tricked customers into paying for tax filing when they should have been able to file for free.

Justice Department Is Scrutinizing Takeover of Credit Karma by Intuit, Maker of TurboTax

The antitrust probe comes after ProPublica detailed how the takeover could reduce competition in the tax prep business.

How the Trump Administration Allowed Aviation Companies to Keep Relief Money That Was Supposed to Go to Workers

One of the most generous programs of the bailout was meant to help airline industry companies keep their workers on the payroll. Some laid workers off first and then got the money anyway.

TurboTax and H&R Block Used “Unfair and Abusive Practices,” State Regulator Finds

The investigation, which is ongoing, came after a ProPublica series showed that millions of Americans were coerced into paying for tax filing they should get for free.

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