Infographics

According to data from the U.S. Travel Association, travel – both domestic and international – has a big impact on economic growth and job creation in the states. In 2015, domestic travelers took almost 2.2 billion trips and 77.5 million international visitors traveled to the U.S. These travelers combined generated $2.1 trillion in output for the U.S. economy and provided jobs for 15.1 million Americans, or one in nine private sector jobs. In addition, travel generated a total of $67 billion in state and local tax revenue.

Congress must vote by Sept. 30 to ensure the future of federal funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, or CHIP. States are following this vote closely, as 8.9 million children per year are insured under CHIP.

The number of unemployed persons per job opening fell to 1.13 in June 2017, a 10-year low and significantly lower than the July 2009 peak of 6.6. In other words, we are close to having a job opening for every person that is unemployed. In the Midwest, the number of unemployed per job opening has now dropped to less than one, the lowest of any region.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the average married middle income ($59,200-$107,400) couple can expect to spend $233,610 on each child for food, shelter and other necessities through age 17. Child care and education will take up 16 percent of those expenditures. However, child care costs vary dramatically across the country.

The Trump administration is making school choice expansion a cornerstone of their education policy. In a recent speech, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos promised “the most ambitious expansion of school choice in our nation’s history.” Charters and other school choice options are...