The 2023 State of the Union in Numbers

President Joe Biden will deliver the State of the Union address tomorrow. Before then, see the data on how the nation is doing with USAFacts’ State of the Union in Numbers. This annual report includes information on some of the most commonly covered topics in the yearly address. Use these dozens of data points to measure the nation's progress in metrics, not rhetoric, ahead of the speech and rebuttal.

Here’s just a preview of what’s available in the new report:

• The federal government collected $5.0 trillion in revenue in fiscal year 2022 — or $15,098 per person. More than half of that was from individual income taxes. 
   
• The government also spent $6.5 trillion ($19,434 per person). Seventy-five percent of spending was on Medicare, Social Security, defense and veterans, transfers to states, aid such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and refundable tax credits.

• Single adults without kids were 29% of all US households in 2022. The share of households headed by married parents dropped from 44.24% to 17.79% between 1960 and 2022. 

• Governments spent $267 billion on law enforcement and corrections in 2020 — the most since at least 1980 (after adjusting for inflation). However, per capita law enforcement and corrections spending was down to $805 in 2020. The high mark was $832 per person in 2009.

• Preliminary 2022 data shows that the US has sent about $10 billion in assistance to Ukraine. This is the most aid the nation has ever given Ukraine and more than it granted any other country in 2020 (the most recent year with complete foreign aid data available).

• The nation had 7.8 million energy-related jobs in 2021, with energy-efficiency jobs employing the most people: 2.2 million. These jobs included providing insulation, improving natural lighting, and manufacturing Energy Star products. 
   
• The federal government spent $36.6 billion on infrastructure in 2022 and transferred another $94.5 billion to states. 

Use the State of the Union in Numbers for nonpartisan facts to answer such questions as: How much does the United States spend on immigration and border security? Who in America has a college degree? How is the Federal Reserve curbing inflation? This report is a data-centric tool both for the big speech and informing your conversations year-round.

Data behind the news

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Biden met last week to discuss the country’s debt limit. The debt ceiling will likely come up in the president’s address tomorrow — here’s an updated explanation of the issue. 

How did you do in last week’s fact quiz? Be sure to check your rank with this week’s edition. 
 

One last fact