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Government
Government of the United States of America
The federal government for the United States of America has three branches: the legislature, executive, and judiciary. Through a system of separation of powers, each branch has some authority to act on its own and some authority to regulate the other two branches.
However, the powers of the federal government as a whole are limited by the Constitution, leaving a great deal of authority to the individual states.
Over the past decade the federal government has made more than 94 million pages of information available electronically. We’ve narrowed it down to the links most likely of interest to you.
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| The White House | . | Official News and Policy Statements |
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| Department of Defense | . | Department of Defense Press Releases |
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| Federal Bureau of Investigation |
. | Press Releases |
| . | . | Ten Most Wanted |
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| U.S. Department of State |
. | Diplomatic Security Rewards for Justice is a program that was established in 1984. Under the Rewards for Justice Program,cooperating individuals and their immediate family members may be eligible for relocation to the United States or
elsewhere, and they are assured complete confidentiality. Rewards, totaling millions of dollars, have been paid in dozens of cases. Innocent lives have been saved and terrorists put behind bars. |
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| . | . | Travel Warnings are periodically issued by the State Departmentbased on whatever current and relevant information they may have, to recommend when Americans should avoid travel to a particular area of the world. Countries where avoidance
of travel is recommended will have Travel Warnings as well as Consular Information Sheets. |
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| Federal Aviation Administration |
. | Air Traffic Control Command Center: provides current airport on-time status for inbound and departing flights. |
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| Transportation Security Administration |
. | Airport Security Checkpoint Delays provide current security check-in delays at specific airport boarding gates. |
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| . | . | Air Travel Prohibited Items are provided in the form of current restrictions,exceptions and special considerations regarding items you pack or bring aboard during air travel. |
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| National Transportation Safety Board |
. | Aircraft incident reporting and investigation. |
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| For additional information see: | ||
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| UnitedStatesOfAmerica.com Federal Branches page. | ||
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| UnitedStatesOfAmerica.com Federal Agencies page. | ||
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| UnitedStatesOfAmerica.com State Governments page. | ||
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Population
United States of America at a Glance
The United States of America is a geographic area encompassing 3,676,482 square miles (9,522,051 sq km) and is politically divided into fifty states and a federal district. The population is currently estimated to exceed 300,000,000 and continues to grow at a rate of one person every eleven seconds:
One birth every.................................. 7 seconds One death every.................................. 13 seconds One international migrant (net) every............ 30 seconds Net gain of one person every..................... 11 seconds
| Population | ||
| Population, 2008 estimate | 304,098,484 | |
| Population, percent change between April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2006 | 6.40% | |
| Population 2000 Census | 281,421,906 | |
| Persons under 5 years old | 6.80% | |
| Persons under 18 years old | 24.60% | |
| Persons 65 years old and over | 12.40% | |
| Female persons | 50.70% | |
| White persons | 80.10% | |
| Black persons | 12.80% | |
| American Indian and Alaska Native persons | 1.00% | |
| Asian persons | 4.40% | |
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander | 0.20% | |
| Persons reporting two or more races | 1.60% | |
| Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin | 14.80% | |
| White persons not Hispanic | 66.40% | |
| Living in same house percent 5 yrs old & over | 54.10% | |
| Foreign born persons | 11.10% | |
| Language other than English spoken at home | 17.90% | |
| High school graduates, percent of persons age 25+ | 80.40% | |
| Bachelor’s degree or higher, pct of persons age 25+ | 24.40% | |
| Persons with a disability, age 5+ | 49,746,248 | |
| Mean travel time to work (minutes), workers age 16+ | 25.5 | |
| Housing units | 126,316,181 | |
| Homeownership rate | 66.20% | |
| Housing units in multi-unit structures | 26.40% | |
| Median value of owner-occupied housing units | $119,600 | |
| Households | 105,480,101 | |
| Persons per household | 2.59 | |
| Median household income | $44,334 | |
| Per capita money income | $21,587 | |
| Persons below poverty | 12.70% | |
| Business | ||
| Private nonfarm establishments | 7,499,702 | |
| Private nonfarm employment | 116,317,003 | |
| Private nonfarm employment, percent change 2000-2005 | 2.00% | |
| Nonemployer establishments | 20,392,068 | |
| Total number of firms | 22,974,655 | |
| Black-owned firms | 5.20% | |
| American Indian and Alaska Native owned firms | 0.90% | |
| Asian-owned firms | 4.80% | |
| Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander owned firms | 0.10% | |
| Hispanic-owned firms | 6.80% | |
| Women-owned firms | 28.20% | |
| Manufacturers shipments | 3,916,136,712 | |
| Wholesale trade sales ($1000) | 4,634,755,112 | |
| Retail sales ($1000) | 3,056,421,997 | |
| Retail sales | $10,615 | |
| Accommodation and foodservices sales | 449,498,718 | |
| Building permits | 1,838,903 | |
| Federal spending ($1000) | 21,437,817,271 | |
Top States
California - the most popular state in the union
California tourist attractions are numerous and diverse. Whether you enjoy cities, mountains, forests or oceans, the State of California offers more variety than any other state in the U.S. Hikers and mountain bikers will love the mountains of California. Skiers and snowboarders can pursue powder days at the Lake Tahoe and Mammoth Ski resorts. Geology enthusiasts can experience the wonder of the Mount Shasta Volcano. If you are interested in military history, pay a visit to the USS Mount Whitney. Oenophiles will be delighted with the California Wine Country. Fans of the Silver Screen will enjoy the glitter and glamour of Hollywood. There are California tourist attractions for every taste.
In addition to the traditional California tourist attractions, there are a number of unique of humorous attractions that should be explored. For example, do you remember Pez dispensers? If you harbor fond memories of this popular childhood treat, you will be delighted by the Museum of Pez Memorabilia. Located just a few miles from the San Francisco Airport, this museum displays every Pez dispenser ever made. Read more »
Growth
Fastest-Growing Metro Areas
The Atlanta metro area gained 890,000 residents from April 1, 2000, to July 1, 2006, the largest numerical gain of the nation’s 361 metro areas.
This Georgia metro area (Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta) was the nation’s ninth largest as of July 1, 2006 with a population of 5.1 million. Overall, six metro areas each gained at least 500,000 people between 2000 and 2006.
Dallas-Fort Worth had the second largest numeric increase at 842,000, and totaled about 6 million people. Houston (825,000), Phoenix (787,000) and Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario (771,000) rounded out the top five.
The Northeast metro area with the greatest numeric change between 2000 and 2006 was New York (seventh overall nationally), while the Midwest metro area with the greatest numeric change over the same period was Chicago (10th overall nationally).
New York was the most populous metro area on July 1, 2006, with 18.8 million people, followed by Los Angeles (13 million) and Chicago (9.5 million). Fourteen metro areas had populations of 4 million or more.
The New Orleans metro area experienced the greatest numeric loss from April 1, 2000, to July 1, 2006, declining 292,000 since 2000 to 1 million on July 1, 2006. It was followed by Pittsburgh (a loss of 60,000) and Cleveland (a loss of 34,000). The New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, La., metro area also had the biggest percentage loss during the same time period at 22.2 percent. It was followed by Gulfport-Biloxi, Miss. (a loss of 7.4 percent) and Weirton- Steubenville, W.Va.-Ohio (a loss of 5.2 percent). Read more »