Jason Grotto
Jason Grotto is a former reporter for ProPublica Illinois, where he covered issues related to municipal finance, including pensions, debt and taxation.
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Born and raised in Chicago, former ProPublica Illinois reporter Jason Grotto specializes in quantitative analysis, using databases, statistics and mapping to ferret out corruption, negligence and bad public policy. Previously, he worked as an investigative reporter for the Chicago Tribune and the Miami Herald. His project exposing widespread inaccuracies and disparities in Cook County’s property tax assessment system was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for local reporting and received the Gerald Loeb Award for local reporting in 2018. He has also reported on the pension crisis in Chicago and Illinois and led another Gerald Loeb Award-winning investigation on Chicago Public Schools’ disastrous use of auction-rate securities. He has uncovered fraud in federal poverty programs, problems in Iraq war contracting and flaws in the Chicago Housing Authority’s Plan for Transformation.
He was a 2015 Nieman Fellow at Harvard University, where he studied municipal finance. Other honors include a Chicago/Midwest Emmy Award, an Investigative Reporters and Editors Award and the Society of Environmental Journalists Award. He earned a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Missouri in 2000 and a bachelor’s in U.S. history from the University of Oregon in 1995.
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Cook County Assessor Joe Berrios’ Defeat Opens the Door to Reform
Democratic primary winner Fritz Kaegi pledged change, but delivering it won’t be easy.
Flawed Assessments Caused $2 Billion Shift in Property Taxes, Study Finds
Under Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios, assessment system shaved $1 billion from Chicago’s most expensive homes, while owners of lower-valued homes picked up the tab.
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We stick with the facts, and several editors read every story.
Cook County’s Residential Property Tax Assessments Deeply Unfair, Independent Study Confirms
Findings that assessments were error-ridden and burdened the poor undermine Assessor Joseph Berrios’ claims that he properly valued residential property.
Sometimes, Impact Isn’t All It’s Cracked Up To Be
Claims from officials that they’re acting in response to a story need to be investigated, too.
As March Primary Nears, Study on Cook County Property Tax System Still Under Wraps
Initial mid-December deadline for review gives way to new release date: late February.
Rauner Takes Aim at State Lawmakers Who Appeal Property Taxes
But the Illinois governor's effort may have little impact on the system.
Ethics Board Fines Cook County Assessor Over Campaign Contributions
Rulings add to controversy surrounding Assessor Joseph Berrios, though Berrios’ lawyers say contribution limits are unconstitutional.
Cook County Assessor’s Old-School Politics Come With a Price for Taxpayers
As Berrios’ court fight drags on, critics and others fear patronage hurts the office’s property tax work.