Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World

Data Feed: Rising state tax revenue, falling metro-area unemployment, what college students are really like

A daily roundup of fresh data from scholars, governments, think tanks, pollsters and other social science researchers. 

Politics Christie job approval continues to drop among N.J. voters, Quinnipiac … and most see ‘Bridgegate’ scandal as a serious issue for him, Rutgers-Eagleton Gov. Brown’s approval among California voters at new high (59%), The Field Poll Non-representative Xbox poll generated accurate election forecast, Monkey Cage Those who say ACA isn’t liberal enough may not mean what you think, HuffPost/YouGov

Economy States see rise in tax revenue for third year in a row, Census Bureau Year-over-year unemployment down in 338 of 372 metro areas, BLS Tri-state region (NY/NJ/CT) most likely to say state taxes are too high, Gallup Drop in entrepreneurship in 2013 points to recovering job market, Washington Post Chart: The gender pay gap by state and profession, Washington Post Teen (16-19) employment rate fell from 45% in 2000 to 26% in 2011, National Journal Salvadoran migrants saved more when they had greater control of finances, NBER

Health & Society Net 9.3 million gained health insurance from Sept. 2013 to mid-March 2014, RAND Corp. Sliver of Medicare doctors get big share of payoutsinteractive, New York Times 19.8% under 65 are in families with problems paying medical bills in first half of 2013, CDC Birth rates among teens ages 15 to 17 dropped 63% from 1991 to 2012, CDC Just 29% of college students are just out of high school, living on campus and full-time, Vox Americans’ trust in online higher ed rising, Gallup Elite colleges turn away up to 95%, New York Times Tracking education and earnings inequality among U.S.-born men, Urban Institute Majority of Americans think race relations are generally good, CBS News U.S. whites get more conservative when told they’ll soon be minority, Psychological Science Catholic clergy, lay leaders divided on revised missal, CARA/Georgetown U. Social and economic characteristics of nation’s 55,000 centenarians, Census Bureau

International In Africa, parents’ education largely determines children’s schooling level, Gallup OECD unemployment rate increased 0.1 points to 7.6% in February, OECD

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