News in Numbers
The inflation increase in February as compared to a year ago, the largest year-over-year rise since January 1982. Not including volatile prices for food and energy, core inflation rose 5.4 percent in February from the year prior. Consumer spending only increased by 0.2 percent, a significant drop from the 2.7 percent spending gain in January.
The number of states that are suing the Biden administration to end the federal travel mask mandate, claiming it “harms the states” and interferes with local laws.
The proportion of Americans who are extremely/very concerned or somewhat concerned that Russia will use nuclear weapons against the United States.
The cost to purchase a vacant, city-owned home in Baltimore, according to a proposal by City Council President Nick Mosby. The idea is inspired by a well-remembered program from the 1970s. Mosby wants to devote about a third of Baltimore’s funds from the American Rescue Plan Act to his proposal, which would include a supporting program to fund home repairs, and a bill to help seniors struggling with reverse mortgages.
The amount that Maine Gov. Janet Mills has proposed sending to most residents in the state to help offset rising inflation costs. Other states, including California, Kansas and Minnesota, have also proposed similar rebate checks to residents. The average American family spent $3,500 more last year to buy the same amount of goods and services as previous years.
The proportion of American adults who believe that President Biden’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has not been tough enough, including 43 percent of Democrats and 68 percent of Republicans.
The number of Americans who signed up for Obamacare health insurance for 2022, an increase of 21 percent from last year and the highest enrollment since the Affordable Care Act was signed in 2010.
The bipartisan vote tally in Olympia in the final minutes of this year’s legislative session that all but clears the way for pickleball to become the state’s official sport. According to the USA Pickleball Association, the sport was created on Bainbridge Island in the summer of 1965 by then state Rep. Joel Pritchard, who would later go on to serve as Washington’s lieutenant governor and represent the state in Congress. The bill now awaits the governor’s signature.
The number of acres in Texas that had burned in four wildfires west of Dallas as of Saturday, March 19. The fires were only about 30 percent contained.
The proportion of Americans who felt that the experiences and viewpoints of white adults were considered when developing artificial intelligence technology, according to a recent survey. Only 44, 24 and 23 percent of respondents thought that the experiences of Asian, Black and Hispanic adults respectively were taken into development consideration. Forty-five percent of U.S. adults said they were equally concerned and excited about AI technology.
The approximate number of historically Black colleges and universities across the country that have been the target of bomb threats in the past three months.
The amount that Amazon will be awarding in loans for affordable housing construction near two D.C. metro stops. The funds will go to two developers, Urban Atlantic and Gilbane Development Company, to create 742 new apartments near the New Carrollton and College Park Metro stations.
The annual amount paid by agents of the Russian government to air the pro-Putin programming of Radio Sputnik on two small American-owned stations, one in the Washington, D.C., area (WZHF) and the other in the Kansas City area (KCXL). The amount works out to be 154.1 billion Russian rubles at their current hyper-deflated exchange rate. The National Association of Broadcasters has called on both stations to stop airing the Russian-backed propaganda immediately.
The increase in Black-owned businesses as compared to pre-pandemic levels, growth that is primarily driven by Black women.
The proportion of U.S. adults who expect to spend less on meals out if gasoline prices continue to rise; 49 percent said they would reduce spending on movies and other entertainment while 60 percent reported they wouldn’t drive as far for leisure activities.
The rate of local election officials who say that they’re planning on leaving their position before 2024. The most common reasons cited included job stress and that too many politicians were attacking “a system that they know is fair and honest.”
The increase in metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions in 2021, the highest increase ever recorded in human history.
The potential increase in the U.S. economy over the next 10 years if the female labor market participation grows to levels seen in other developed economies.
The amount that Americans paid in late payment fees to electrical utilities in 2019. Some utility companies charge late fees that are much higher than the national average; five companies averaged $17.50 per customer in annual late fee revenues between 2011 and 2020, three times more than the national average during that same period.
The unemployment rate in February, a two-year low. Employment is still 2.1 million jobs below pre-pandemic levels, but economists expect all jobs will be recovered this year.
The number of people who died in vehicular accidents in 2020, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the deadliest year since 2007. The numbers show a 14 percent increase in fatalities involving drivers who drank too much alcohol.
The number of states in which it is legal to marry before the age of 18. Many parents will use child marriage as a way to benefit financially; one common legal loophole in child marriage laws is that it only takes one parent to consent to the marriage of a 16- or 17-year-old and once that minor is married, any unresolved custody agreements are moot. Unchained At Last, an organization that advocates for the end of forced and child marriages, estimates that nearly 300,000 minors were married between 2000 and 2018.
The cost-of-living increase that California public employees who retired between 2006 and 2014 will receive in their pensions, the largest inflation adjustment in 32 years. Most other California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) retirees will receive either a 2 percent or an increase between 2 and 4.7 percent, depending on their retirement year. About 750,000 retirees and beneficiaries receive pensions from CalPERS.
When New York state will end its mask mandate for schools and child-care facilities.
The estimated amount of federal rental assistance funds that have been given to low-income tenants, the Treasury Department reported. The largest percentage of recipients were Black followed by female-led households.
The proportion of Americans who say that it’s not important to them personally that a Black woman becomes a Supreme Court Justice; 63 percent of Black Americans say it’s very or extremely important to them personally, compared to just 21 percent of white Americans and 33 percent of Hispanics.
The number of maternal deaths per 100,000 births among Black people in 2020, almost triple the rate for whites. Black and Hispanic people saw increases in pregnancy-related deaths, the white death rate remained essentially unchanged.
The median rent increase across the 50 largest U.S. metro areas from December 2020 to December 2021 for properties with two or fewer bedrooms. But some areas experienced much larger increases, such as the Miami metro area where rent increased 49.8 percent.
The number of children who are in poverty since the monthly Child Tax Credit payments expired at the end of 2021, an increase of nearly 5 percent between December 2021 to January 2022, with an even higher growth in poverty for Black and Latino children.
One model’s estimate of how many Americans who are, for now, immune to the omicron variant of COVID-19, with predictions that the immunity rate could rise to 80 percent by mid-March.
