U.S. private prison population has declined in recent years
In 2015, about 126,000 prisoners were held in privately operated facilities under the jurisdiction of 29 states and the federal Bureau of Prisons.
Publications
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Immigration offenses make up a growing share of federal arrests
Federal law enforcement agencies are making more arrests for immigration-related offenses and fewer arrests for other types of offenses – including drug, property and gun crimes – than they were a decade ago.
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Americans remain divided on how the Supreme Court should interpret the Constitution
The contentious Senate debate over Judge Neil Gorsuch’s nomination to the Supreme Court has cast a spotlight on deep partisan and ideological divisions in Congress – and in the public – over how the U.S. Supreme Court should interpret the Constitution when making its decisions.
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What does the federal government spend your tax dollars on? Social insurance programs, mostly
From Social Security to national parks, a look at long-range trends in federal outlays relative to the U.S. economy
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As Republicans’ views improve, Americans give the economy its highest marks since financial crisis
Nearly six-in-ten people in the United States say the economic situation is very or somewhat good, the most positive assessment of the economy since 2007.
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Are Telephone Polls Understating Support for Trump?
Five months after Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 election, public opinion polls find him with the lowest approval ratings of any president in modern history at this stage of a presidency.
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Partisans in ‘safest’ counties for their party more willing to discuss political differences
Partisans in counties in which their party was politically dominant in the 2016 election were much more likely to support seeking common ground politically.
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Federal criminal prosecutions fall to lowest level in nearly two decades
Federal prosecutors filed criminal charges against 77,152 defendants in fiscal year 2016. That’s a decline of 25% since fiscal 2011.
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Access to paid family leave varies widely across employers, industries
Americans generally support paid family and medical leave, according to a new Pew Research Center survey, but relatively few workers have access to it. Access to paid leave varies considerably by industry, type of employer and employer’s size.
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Many lower-income Republicans see ensuring health coverage for all as a government responsibility
Lower-income Republicans are somewhat more likely than higher-income Republicans to support the Affordable Care Act, and many say ensuring health care coverage for all is a government responsibility.
