In the last few months, Data Wednesday has covered all of the basics you need to know when using our Federal Priorities Database. We’ve covered so much ground, in fact, that it’s time for Data Wednesday to go on a hiatus. However, NPP would be more than happy to entertain ...

Nancy Albert, of San Juan, Puerto Rico asks how much do we spend on the CIA, and where in the budget would you find that money?The short answer is, we don't know. Now here's the longer answer, which includes what we do know about what the government spends on intelligence, ...

I had an interesting discovery while combing through the numbers of the president's budget. I found that President Obama's spending priorities match pretty closely with the things Americans say they want. Of course the budget is complicated. But let’s say for a moment that it’s as simple as a public opinion polling question.

WIC participation and benefits are now current through 2011.

This is the latest entry in NPP’s weekly Data Wednesday series, a getting-started guide to NPP’s Federal Priorities Database. All previous posts are archived here. Back in February, we introduced data normalization. The bottom line: it’s hard to compare data across time and geographies accurately unless that data is normalized. ...

Kris from Concord, California, wrote in to ask how much aid the United States gives to foreign countries. Foreign aid and diplomacy together comprise around 1 percent of the federal budget, or $56 billion in President Obama’s 2013 budget request. That money goes toward global poverty alleviation, including a contribution ...

On Saturday, March 3, 2012, 350 people packed the Haydenville Congregational Church to celebrate the life and work of National Priorities Project founder Greg Speeter. As a husband, father, brother, mentor, friend, and force-of-nature-community-organizer, Greg touched the lives of people in every corner of our nation. During the service, led ...

In a recent blog my colleague Mattea noted that a February poll by the Hill of likely voters found that the top priority for 45 percent of respondents was "job creation." In close second, with 40 percent, was "cutting spending." Support for cutting government spending is certainly the result of ...

The latest Data Wednesday explains what per capita data is, how it's calculated, and why you'd want to use it. Using food stamp spending as an example, we see how per capita spending figures are useful when comparing numbers between states.

The presidential election is about voters’ vision for how the federal government should serve the American people. National Priorities Project’s Primary Stakes series examines how residents of primary states currently rely on assistance from the federal government, and two Super Tuesday states illustrate that support from the federal government—and taxes ...