Latest Contributions

• A lender sued thousands of lower-income Latinos during the pandemic. Now it wants to be a national bank.

  by Kiah Collier and Ren Larson, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica Jan. 8, 2021

  Oportun, which lends in only a dozen states, applied for a bank charter late last year. Consumer and Latino civil rights groups are pushing back, citing the findings of a joint investigation by ProPublica and The Texas Tribune. Full Story 

• South Texas restrictions were meant to protect people from COVID-19. Then the handcuffs and ticket books came out.

  by Vianna Davila and Ren Larson, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica Dec. 19, 2020

  Governments along the Texas-Mexico border took a hard line to limit the spread of the new coronavirus. Police were key to the public health response, resulting in hundreds jailed and nearly 2,000 people ticketed. Full Story 

• This loan company was founded to help Latino immigrants. It has sued thousands of low-income Latinos during the pandemic.

  by Kiah Collier, Ren Larson and Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica Aug. 31, 2020

  A monthslong investigation revealed that Oportun Inc. routinely uses lawsuits to intimidate a vulnerable population into keeping up with high-interest loan payments — even amid COVID-19. Full Story 

• Oportun Inc. has filed nearly 10,000 lawsuits this year against lower-income Texans. This is how we found out.

  by Ren Larson and Kiah Collier, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica Aug. 31, 2020

  Justice of the peace courts, where a majority of debt claims are filed in Texas, aren’t required to report case-level information. Here’s how ProPublica and Texas Tribune reporters got around it to reveal one company’s aggressive tactics. Full Story 

• This Silicon Valley-based lender sued thousands of Texans during the pandemic. It stopped when we started asking questions.

  by Kiah Collier and Ren Larson, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica July 28, 2020

  The company didn’t say exactly how many pending lawsuits it would drop in Texas and elsewhere, but it confirmed that “several thousand cases” would be impacted. Full Story 

• Gov. Greg Abbott is limiting enforcement of COVID-19 orders, but many cities already took a lax approach

  by Sally Beauvais, Lexi Churchill, Kiah Collier, Vianna Davila and Ren Larson, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica May 14, 2020

  Texas cities and counties have dramatically different interpretations of the state’s COVID-19 emergency orders. Complaint data from a dozen cities shows that disparate approaches to enforcement, particularly among businesses, have been incredibly common. Full Story 

• Coronavirus put her out of work, then debt collectors froze her savings account

  by Kiah Collier and Ren Larson, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica April 22, 2020

  Kim Boatswain's tax refund could have helped her get through the coronavirus slowdown. But debt collectors seized it. There are few options for Texans like Boatswain whose money was taken just before the state temporarily banned such garnishments. Full Story