The United States lags behind other countries when it comes to sophisticated infrastructure in part because it lacks the workers to build or maintain it.

There’s a whole new generation of heroin addicts in rural areas and smaller, struggling cities, which have few resources to fight the epidemic and its affects.

While minimum-wage workers feel the pinch everywhere, it’s far more difficult to make a living in the nation’s most expensive urban centers. View data and read an analysis for more than 300 cities.

Yes, it’s been a boon for government work, but it also opens the door to conflict and confusion.

Paul Volcker and Richard Ravitch’s State Budget Crisis Task Force recommends ways government can make reporting cleaner, clearer and simpler.