Just the Facts: Economy and energy & the environment

Yesterday, USAFacts Founder Steve Ballmer debuted the next installments in the Just the Facts series. For the next few weeks, we’ll focus on the topics from these videos and dig into aspects of the economy and energy & the environment.

Understanding the US economy

The economy is one of the biggest topics this election season. But the economy isn’t just one thing. It’s many, many measurements and indicators, from nationwide numbers to Americans’ wallets and kitchen tables. So, to start, we’ll break down the sometimes unwieldy concept of GDP.

Gross domestic product (GDP) is the value of all goods and services produced in the American economy. In the second quarter of 2024, US GDP rose 3.0% to $28.65 trillion.
Measuring GDP across locations and industries is helpful in analyzing economic shifts, such as the GDP growth in information technology as the internet expanded in the 1990s.

Sixty-eight percent of GDP comes from consumer spending on goods and services. Another 18% comes from investments and another 18% from government spending. The US has imported more than it has exported recently, making trade account for -3% of GDP.

Get more economic facts

How much energy does the US make and use?

For 61 years, the United States used more energy than it produced. That changed in 2019 when production surpassed consumption — and it’s remained that way since. So, what's behind this shift? And how does America keep its lights on?

The US is the world’s top producer of both oil and gas. In 2023, fossil fuels were 75% of US energy production, with natural gas accounting for 38.2% and crude oil accounting for 26.1%. Renewable energy sources comprised 8.2%. Nuclear energy was at 8.1%.
Coal, once the top energy source, has fallen by half since 2008. In 2023, it was 11.5% of energy production. Wyoming produces more coal than any other state, accounting for 41.2% in 2022.
Crude oil is also the nation’s top energy source, accounting for 38% of the energy usage. It’s been the nation’s top source since data tracking began in 1950. In 1977 and 1978, it reached 49% of US energy consumption.
Renewable energy has long been part of US energy consumption but its usage hasn't exceeded 10%. It has fluctuated between 3% and 9% since 1950. It's used the most in the electric power sector (39% of renewables) and the least in the commercial sector (3%).

Track US power production

Steve Ballmer on the Daily Show tomorrow

Catch Steve Ballmer on a post-presidential debate episode of The Daily Show tomorrow at 11 pm ET/8 pm PT. He'll talk with host Jon Stewart about the importance of trusted source data this election season.

Data behind the news

A 14-year-old boy and his father were charged in a Georgia school shooting that left two students and two teachers dead last Wednesday. Here’s the government data on school shootings.

The Chinese government has said it will no longer allow most foreign adoptions. China suspended international adoptions at the start of the pandemic; prior to that, it was the top nation for foreign-born children adopted into US families.

Test your knowledge of the latest data with the weekly fact quiz.

One last fact: Election edition

How much have PACs spent in the presidential election cycles?

Traditional political action committees (PACs) have both spending and donation limits. They can spend up to $5,000 on a candidate every election, up to $5,000 annually in contributions to other PACs, and up to $15,000 on national party committees.

Super PACs, however, came about after the 2010 Citizens United v. FEC court decision. Read more about it here.