View this email in your browser

Who are America’s veterans?

November 11, 2023, marked the 105th anniversary of Armistice Day, which commemorates the end of World War I. In the decades since, the date has been set aside to honor people who have fought in America’s wars, with former President Dwight D. Eisenhower issuing the first Veterans Day Proclamation in 1954.

• In 2022, 6.2% of the adult American population, or 16.2 million people, identified as veterans. This is down from 23.42 million in 2005.

  
  

• Almost half of veterans (49.3%) were 65 or older, while 26.5% were over 75 or older. Eight and a half percent of veterans were younger than 35.

Read the article here. Then, dive into 10 new charts, including veterans by state and how much the government spends on them.

Tracking years of federal deficits

In fiscal year 2023, the federal government spent $6.13 trillion and raised $4.44 trillion, resulting in a $1.70 trillion deficit. This is $320 billion higher than the deficit from fiscal year 2022. This article has a look at the new deficit.

• A surplus occurs when the government has collected more taxes and other incomes than it spent. The last national surplus was in fiscal year 2001: nearly $130 billion.

Learn more about what leads to deficits in this article. Want to know more about the difference between the national deficit and the debt? Get an explanation here.

How common are trail derailments in the US?

On November 6, the Biden administration announced $16 billion in grants for improving train tracks and tunnels, primarily in New England. And in February, a train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, brought attention to the propensity and severity of train derailments in the US. With this renewed focus on the nation's railways, USAFacts examined if derailments are becoming more common.

• Derailments have decreased since the 1980s. There were 6,929 derailments reported in 1980; that had fallen to 1,259 in 2022. However, the highest number over the past several decades was 9,400 in 1978.

Learn about the legislation that senators introduced in the wake of the East Palestine incident at USAFacts.  

Data behind the news

Last Tuesday, Ohioans voted to enshrine a right to abortion in the state constitution. This article from our archives has data on which states people travel to for abortions.

Office-sharing company WeWork filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last week. Here’s a primer on several forms of bankruptcy, including Chapter 11.

Time for the weekly fact quiz! Need to brush up? USAFacts is your study guide.

One last fact

In the federal fiscal year 2022, 30.1 million students — over 60% of all public school students — received a free or reduced-price lunch through the National School Lunch Program. This is partly attributed to a pandemic waiver that allowed all students in the school lunch program to receive free meals.