USAFacts

The first #JustTheFacts episodes are officially live! Get the numbers — not rhetoric — on US immigration and the federal budget. Make sure to subscribe to our newsletter to get exclusive access to future episodes. #budget #immigration #usafacts usafacts.org/just-the-facts…

@tmylesdesign 2024 data is the most recent data as of June 2026. These data come from the American Community Survey conducted by the Census Bureau which releases 1-year estimates annually. 2025 data will be released in September of this year.

@USAFacts from your site There were 50.2 million immigrants in the United States in 2024. do you have 2025 numbers and 2026?

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Summer heat is probably making you thirsty — for data. What’s more refreshing than keeping up with transportation and water infrastructure? As of 2023, the government spent $625.82 billion (about $1,900 per person) on transportation and water infrastructure. Most of this spending goes towards operation and maintenance. Let’s take a trip down spending lane to see where the money goes: 🚗 Highways: 40% of spending 💧 Water utilities: 28% 🚆 Mass transit and rail: 16% So, which government pays for what? Nearly 80% of spending comes from the state and local government. They cover infrastructure assets like highways and sewers. The federal government concentrates on conservation and development such as dams and levees.

As of July 14, 2026, the CDC has reported 1,645 cases of cyclosporiasis - aka explosive diarrhea — across 34 states. But the CDC also says that's likely an undercount and is aware of over 5,000 additional cases that require further analysis. The result? We're not getting a complete picture of what's really happening. Which isn't ideal in this kind of...explosive situation.

As of May, tariff revenue in FY 2026 is 131.7% higher than it was in the same month of FY 2025. Though the total YTD revenue is higher than it was last year, between April and May of this year, tariff revenue dropped by about $42 million. After the Supreme Court ruled in February that the IEEPA tariffs were unconstitutional, Customs and Border Protection began issuing refunds of previously collected customs duties, which contributed to the drop in revenue. Do you think tariff collections for FY 2026 will surpass FY 2025? *As a reminder, fiscal years run from October to September.

Did you know the US Census was the first Constitutionally-mandated data collection policy. That's just how important data collection is to democratic governance! Our analysts Chris and Lucia take us back to the first Census done in 1790 to explain why counting the population is such a foundational part of our nation's history.

@vera_a72394 Great question! We only use publicly available government data. We spend our time downloading, visualizing, and contextualizing government spreadsheets so that you have easy access to this information. And we always cite our sources if you want to verify or go deeper.

@USAFacts Who publishes this information?

What do you store in your garage fridge? 20 million households in the US have a garage fridge — that's roughly 15% of the total number of households with a second fridge.

We bet you never thought you'd hear yourself say: "there needs to be better data on explosive diarrhea" — yet here we are. As of July 13, 1,645 cases of cyclosporiasis have been tracked by the CDC across 34 states — with Michigan experiencing the most of any state. CDC and state and federal partners are working together to investigate several outbreaks of cyclosporiasis but investigations to identify and confirm the sources present a challenge for reporting the latest numbers. This is an opportune time to sign our open letter (if you haven't already) to tell Congress to improve federal and state reporting systems so we have the most accurate data on yes, explosive diarrhea. Go to usafacts.org/supportdata.

How much does beef cost at your local grocery store? Beef prices are more expensive than they were a year ago. The cost of beef and veal has increased 12.9% — 3x the increase of all items (+4.2%) according to the CPI. While beef prices have increased across the US, the specific price increases by beef product vary by region. The West had the highest prices for 2 out of 4 products (chuck roast and sirloin steak). As of June 3rd, 35 cases of New World screwworm (a parasite that can affect livestock) have been recorded in the US — 1 in New Mexico and 34 in Texas. While it doesn't directly raise beef prices, if it spreads widely among cattle, it could reduce supply and contribute to higher prices.

Teens are swapping out cigarettes for cotton candy (-flavored vapes). Fewer teenagers are trying drugs or alcohol compared to the ‘90s. 🚬 Cigarettes: down from 71.3% in 1995 to 14.4% in 2023 🍻 Alcohol: dropped from just over half of teens (51.6%) to less than a quarter (22.1%) 🌿 Marijuana: saw an uptick between 2021 and 2023 but is down 17.7 percentage points from its peak in 1999 (47.2%) While vaping is the most common substance used by teenagers as of 2023, it has also seen a drop in usage since its peak in 2019, 50.1% down to 33.8% in that four-year period. Why do you think these drops in teenage drug and alcohol consumption have happened?

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The 2026 NATO Summit happened this week in Türkiye. But what exactly is NATO? Ben the Intern explains.

Soccer brings these three countries together for the summer. Trade connects them every day. ⚽ Canada and Mexico are the US’s top two trading partners. Imports and exports in 2025 with each country totaled to: 🇲🇽 $970.0 billion 🇨🇦 $879.9 billion While the US’s trade deficit with Canada shrunk last year (-$12.1B YoY), the trade deficit with Mexico grew (+$22.3B YoY). As of July 1st, President Trump has decided not to extend the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) that is set to expire in 2036. The decision initiates a ten-year annual review.

It's intern season here at USAFacts, so we're introducing Ben! The Intern!

Over 8 million people live in subsidized housing. On average, residents in 2025 have lived in their units for over 10 years. Check out the stats on subsidized housing: 🏠 Wait times range from 18–27 months — Maryland has the longest wait at over 4 years. 🏠 Nearly half of households that live in subsidized housing earn less than $15K annually. 🏠 The largest share of households are headed by adults 62+. 🏠 5.13 million units exist across the US and in 2025, 667K were unoccupied and available for rent. While the Department of Housing and Urban Development provides funding for subsidized housing programs, the actual programs are administered locally by public housing authorities (PHAs) at the county and city level.

Are reading scores above or below the national average in your state? 🔡In 2024, 4th and 8th graders had lower reading proficiency, compared to 2022. 🔡 There was a 21-percentage point difference between Massachusetts, the state with the highest rate of 8th grade reading proficiency (40%), and New Mexico, which had the lowest (19%). 🔡4th graders have had a higher reading proficiency rate nationwide compared to 8th graders for all 5 test years since 2015. This data comes from The Nation's Report Card which tests US 4th and 8th graders on their reading skills. So, how are students scored? 🎯Students are scored on a scale from 0 to 500. 🎯8th grade reading proficiency (a score of 281) means you've probably read “Fahrenheit 451” and, when asked, you can provide an opinion and support it by evidence from the text.

President Trump is in Türkiye this week for the NATO summit. At the 2025 summit, members agreed to increase defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035, up from the previous target of 2%. As of FY 2025, the US is the only NATO member to report a decrease in military spending since 2014. Take a look at the breakdown of spending by member country.

We asked - you answered! Help us let Congress know why public data is so important - visit USAFacts.org/supportdata to sign our open letter.

After we read the data on firework injuries, we thought we'd celebrate America's semiquincentennial with a confetti popper. Happy 250, America! 🎆

As America turns 250, we wanted to deliver the best birthday present — staying informed on federal spending. So, how does the government spend the money it collects? In FY 2025, it spent $7.04 trillion. Mandatory spending made up nearly 60% of federal spending in FY 2025 — which includes spending for Social Security and Medicare. The rest of spending is directed towards discretionary spending (think education + defense) and interest payments for the national debt. Curious to see how FY 2026 is tracking? As of May, the government has spent $4.9 trillion — 1.1% higher than spending in May of the previous fiscal year.