Jesse Coburn
ProPublica reporter covering housing, transportation, cities, etc.
propublica.org/people/jesse-coburn
- NEW: The Trump administration is planning to use AI to write federal regulations despite the risk of hallucinations. “We don't even need a very good rule,” the Transportation Department’s top lawyer said of the plan, per meeting notes reviewed by ProPublica. “We want good enough.”🧵
- Federal rulemaking is an exacting process, and the stakes are high at DOT, whose regs stop pipelines from exploding and planes from falling out of the sky. Major rules can take years to write+revise. With Google Gemini, DOT’s top lawyer now expects rules drafted in 20 minutes.
- At a demonstration to DOT staff, a presenter said AI can do 80-90% of the work writing regulations, some of which is just “word salad” anyways. The plan has alarmed some agency staffers, given that LLMs are error prone and incapable of human reasoning. "It seems wildly irresponsible," said one.
-
View full threadYou can read the full story here: www.propublica.org/article/trum...
- Reposted by Jesse Coburn[Not loaded yet]
- NEW: Sean Duffy frequently calls safety his “top priority” as transportation secretary. But I spent months wading through regulatory notices and found something far different: that USDOT has been delaying, weakening and killing dozens of safety rules, many opposed by the transportation industry.🧵
- DOT is on an unprecedented deregulatory blitz. The Trump admin calls this cutting red tape. Left unmentioned is just how many of the targeted rules sought to prevent deaths/injuries. "The regulations are written in blood," one former official told me. www.propublica.org/article/trum...
- Take road safety. The last admin pushed rules for speed limiters+side guards in big rigs and automatic emergency braking in cars+trucks—est. to save 1k lives annually. After industry blowback, the Trump admin has killed, made plans to weaken or signaled delays/changes for each.
-
View full threadI'm still reporting this story. If you work for DOT or an industry regulated by the agency and have relevant information to share, my email is jesse.coburn@propublica.org and I’m on the encrypted messaging app Signal (you can message me at jesse_coburn.56).
- New: four million people could be forced to leave public housing and other federally assisted housing under new plans from the Trump administration, according to experts who reviewed drafts of two unpublished rules obtained by @propublica.org.
- The rules from the Department of Housing and Urban Development would allow major changes to public housing and Section 8 vouchers: - full-time work requirements - 2-year time limits - stripping aid from whole families if one member is in the country illegally www.propublica.org/article/trum...
- ProPublica is publishing the rule drafts in their entirety: Work requirements and term limits: www.documentcloud.org/documents/26... Mixed-status families: www.documentcloud.org/documents/26...
- New: the Trump administration is preparing to shut down seven major housing discrimination and segregation cases — including high-profile investigations in Chicago, Houston and Flint — despite findings in some that civil rights violations occurred. www.propublica.org/article/trum...
- Investigations frozen. Charges withheld. Defendants emboldened not to cooperate. The Trump administration is mounting a major retreat in the government's fight against housing discrimination and segregation, according to ten federal officials. Story here: www.propublica.org/article/trum...
- Reposted by Jesse CoburnNEW: Following reporting by ProPublica, three Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee have warned HUD against using crypto, which they said could be “dangerous, speculative, and harmful to working families.” By @jessecoburn.bsky.social
- Federal investigators spent years on two major housing discrimination cases in Texas, finding what they believed were stark civil rights violations. Then the Trump Admin assumed office and quietly took steps that officials think will likely kill both cases. www.propublica.org/article/trum...
- New: HUD officials recently discussed using the blockchain and maybe cryptocurrency at a division that oversees billions in grants for affordable housing, homeless shelters, disaster recovery etc. A staffer said it'd be like paying grantees in "monopoly money." www.propublica.org/article/hud-...
- New: DOGE has gained access to a Department of Housing and Urban Development system containing confidential personal information about hundreds of thousands of alleged victims of housing discrimination. www.propublica.org/article/doge...
- The Housing Loophole That Lets Wealthy Investors Raise Rents on Poor Tenants www.propublica.org/article/affo...
- Reposted by Jesse Coburn9/ @jessecoburn.bsky.social is concerned about how shifting HUD and DOT policies — such as restrictive zoning laws or highway expansions — will affect those who depend on affordable housing and public transit. Reach out to him if you work for or are impacted by these agencies.
- Reposted by Jesse Coburn“When Musk makes rockets, he himself does not need to read all the details about how a rocket would be made" a fascinating @nyc.streetsblog.org investigation www.streetsblogprojects.org/fly-electric...
- Behind New York City's e-bike and moped boom is a little-known ex-delivery worker who has quietly built a micromobility empire. I spent a year looking into him and the freewheeling industry through which he rose. My last story for @nyc.streetsblog.org www.streetsblogprojects.org/fly-electric...
- Co-published with Curbed! www.curbed.com/article/elec...
- I’m going to be covering housing and transportation for @propublica.org, with a focus on federal policy changes under the new administration. Tips + story ideas welcome, especially from anyone who works for HUD or DOT — jesse.coburn@propublica.org www.propublica.org/article/seco...
- Reposted by Jesse CoburnTHREAD: In 2023, I received an envelope with no return address. Inside was a flash drive containing tens of 1000s of secret files. It came from a vigilante with a tumultuous past, who'd conducted a years-long undercover operation. He didn’t tell the FBI or his family. He only told me.
- Scott Turner voted to ensure landlords could refuse to rent to people on government assistance. He agreed with an interviewer that welfare is worse than slavery. He may soon lead the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. w/ @andykroll.bsky.social www.propublica.org/article/scot...
