Infographics

In May 2016, most states – 44 – saw nonfarm payroll employment grow over the previous year. Employment in five states (Florida, Idaho, Oregon, Utah and Washington) grew by more than 3 percent. In six states (Alaska, Kansas, Louisiana, North Dakota, Oklahoma and Wyoming) year-over-year employment declined. Employment declined the most in North Dakota and Wyoming, each falling by more than 3 percent. Across all states and the District of Columbia, employment grew by 2.4 million (1.7 percent) from May 2015 to May 2016.

Governors’ salaries in 2016 range from a low of $70,000 to a high of $190,823 with an average salary of $137,415. Maine Gov. Paul LePage earns the lowest gubernatorial salary at an annual rate of $70,000, followed by Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, who earns $90,000 per year. Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf has the highest gubernatorial salary at $190,823, followed by Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam’s salary of $187,500 per year, although Haslam returns his salary to the state. Governors in four states—Alabama, Florida, Illinois and Tennessee—do not accept a paycheck or return all or nearly all of their salaries to the state. 

On July 1, 2016 the minimum wage increased in Oregon, Maryland and Washington, D.C. The total number of states with a minimum wage higher than the federal rate of $7.25/hour is 29, ranging from $7.50 in New Mexico and Maine to a high of $10.00 in Massachusetts and California and $11.50 in the District of Columbia. 

In 2015, the U.S. exported over $56 billion in merchandise to the United Kingdom. That represents nearly 4 percent of all U.S. exports and makes the U.K. the fifth largest export market for the U.S. After hitting a 10 year low in 2013, exports have been on the rise to the U.K. for the past two years. However, those gains could be in jeopardy following the U.K.’s recent vote to leave the European Union, also known as “Brexit”. On a state-by-state basis, exports to the U.K. range from less than one percent of total exports in six states (Alaska, Hawaii, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota and South Dakota) to a high of 22.9 percent in Utah and 16.3 percent in Delaware.

On June 27, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down two Texas abortion restrictions. The first required doctors at abortion clinics to obtain admitting privileges at a local hospital. The second required abortion clinics to meet the same standards as hospital-style surgical centers. Currently 26 states have one or both of these provisions.