ProPublica is making a final call for  their Prizes for Investigative Governance, a way to recognize the most important and thorough investigative work by government agencies.

ProPublica is looking for nominations for the best reports from state and federal agencies like the General Accounting Office, various Inspectors General, special counsels, state auditors, Congressional committees, attorneys general, special prosecutors and the like, blogs Mike Webb, the journal’s director of communicationst.

Anyone can nominate  deserving reports. You can download a nomination/entry form here,. But act quickly…The deadline is this Friday, January 30th.

Reports by government agencies are a crucial component in maintaining a high level of transparency for our democracy. Various government agencies conduct investigations and produce reports detailing corruption and exposing information that some in government would hope to keep secret and out of the public eye.  With the rare exception, however, these reports receive little attention and recognition. Now, ProPublica will honor the best.

ProPublica has convened a very impressive panel of judges, including former U.S. Rep. James Leach, former Comptroller General David Walker, former Indianapolis Mayor Stephen Goldsmith, Denver Post editor Gregory Moore, former federal prosecutor Victoria Toensing, former New York Times public editor Byron Calame and ProPublica’s own editor-in-chief Paul Steiger.  They will honor the winners at a luncheon in Washington, D.C., this spring.