Visualizations Archives | Voice For Liberty

Apr

Quarterly tax collections

Tax collections by state and local governments fell by about one percent during calendar year 2020 when compared to the year before. Tax collection data from the United States Census Bureau shows state and local government tax collections falling only slightly during 2020, despite the effects of the pandemic. (more…)

Apr

By Bob Weeks

Kansas tax revenue, March 2021

For March 2021, Kansas tax revenue was 12.7 percent greater than March 2020. Over the nine months of the current fiscal year, revenue is 14.0 percent higher than at the same point of the previous year. (more…)

Apr

By Bob Weeks

Kansas school spending

Kansas school district spending, updated through 2020 and adjusted for inflation. What is the trend in Kansas school spending? This visualization presents several tables and illustrations of spending data. It is presented separately for each district, with a special district "State Totals - 999" being the sum of all districts. (more…)

Mar

By Bob Weeks

Updated: Presidential data explorer

Explore the economic record of presidents through the lens of data, with new views and updates. To examine the record of presidents regarding economics, I gathered data from several sources and present it in an interactive visualization. Today the interactive visualization has been updated with current data and several new views. (more…)

Mar

By Bob Weeks

Unemployment by president

An interactive visualization of unemployment by presidential terms. Here is your animated chart of the unemployment rate for presidents. The time scale is the number of months into each presidential term. View below, or click here to open in a new window.

National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) for Kansas

Mar

By Bob Weeks

National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) for Kansas

Looking at Kansas school test scores as compared to the nation. (more…)

Mar

By Bob Weeks

National employment, February 2021

The unemployment changed little in February 2021, but job growth was stronger than any month since October. The Bureau of Labor Statistics, part of the United States Department of Labor, reported the closely-followed jobs number rose in February 2021 by 379,000 jobs from the prior month. The unemployment rate was "little changed at 6.2 percent." Compared to the economy before the onset of the pandemic, BLS wrote: "Both the unemployment rate, at 6.2 percent, and the number of unemployed persons, at 10.0 million, changed little in February. Although both measures are much lower than their April 2020 highs, they remain…

Mar

By Bob Weeks

Kansas tax revenue, February 2021

For February 2021, Kansas tax revenue was 1.7 percent greater than February 2020. Over the eight months of the current fiscal year, revenue is 14.2 percent higher than at the same point of the previous year. Tax reports from the State of Kansas for February 2021 show tax revenues falling from the previous month, but higher than the same month the prior year, despite the effects of the response to the pandemic. The fall from January is characteristic of the seasonal pattern. When reporting on Kansas tax collections, the comparison is usually made to the estimated collections. Those estimates were…

Feb

By Bob Weeks

GDP by metropolitan area and component

An interactive visualization of gross domestic product by metropolitan area and industry. The Bureau of Economic Analysis, an agency of the United States Department of Commerce, gathers data about economic output, known as gross domestic product. The visualization I have created presents this data in tabular and graphic form. (more…)

Feb

By Bob Weeks

National employment, January 2021

The unemployment rate fell in January 2021, but job growth was weak, and the December value was revised. The Bureau of Labor Statistics, part of the United States Department of Labor, reported the closely-followed jobs number rose in January 2021 by 49,000 jobs from the prior month. The unemployment rate fell from 6.7 percent to 6.4 percent. BLS notes that the total nonfarm employment level is "below its February 2020 level by 9.9 million, or 6.5 percent." The summary report from BLS may be found here. Of note: BLS revised recent figures, which it does as more data becomes available.…

Kansas unemployment claims trending lower

Feb

By Bob Weeks

Kansas unemployment claims trending lower

A visualization of unemployment insurance claims by state, adjusted for population, shows Kansas as having a high number of claims, but trending lower. (more…)

Feb

By Bob Weeks

Kansas tax revenue, January 2021

For January 2021, total Kansas tax revenue was 9.7 percent greater than January 2020. Over the seven months of the current fiscal year, tax revenue is 15.5 percent higher than at the same point of the previous fiscal year. (more…)

Jan

By Bob Weeks

Kansas agency revenue

Data regarding State of Kansas agency revenue presented in an interactive visualization, with data through fiscal year 2020. The source of this data is KanView, the Kansas transparency portal, through its download center. Data from multiple years are combined into one database. Data starts with fiscal year 2011. (more…)

Visualization: Kansas agency revenue

Data regarding State of Kansas agency revenue presented in an interactive visualization. The source of this data is KanView, the Kansas transparency portal, through its download center. Data from multiple years are combined into one database. Data starts with fiscal year 2011 and is available through fiscal year 2020. Of this data, KanView advises: Annual Revenues represents agency receipts and deposits into funds established within the state treasury, including: taxes, agency earnings, revenue from the use of money and property, gifts, donations, federal grants, and other revenues. The function view identifies revenue for high-level activities and programs of the State…

Jan

By Bob Weeks

Kansas agency expenditures

Data regarding State of Kansas agency spending presented in an interactive visualization. The source of this data is KanView, the Kansas transparency portal, through its download center. Data from multiple years are combined into one database. Data starts with fiscal year 2011. (more…)

Effects of pandemic on employment in states

Jan

By Bob Weeks

Effects of pandemic on employment in states

The effects of the response to the pandemic vary widely among the states. (more…)

Visualization: Kansas 2020 presidential election

Jan

By Bob Weeks

Visualization: Kansas 2020 presidential election

An interactive visualization of the 2020 general election for president in Kansas, at the precinct level. (more…)

Visualization: Kansas 2020 presidential election

An interactive visualization of the 2020 general election for president in Kansas, at the precinct level. Professor Brian Amos of Wichita State University has published precinct-level returns for the Kansas 2020 general election for the presidential and senatorial contests. I present the presidential returns in an interactive visualization. Precincts are colored by Biden vote percentage, with values less than 50 percent colored red. As you hover over a precinct, a table of data should appear. There is a filter for the total number of votes cast in a precinct. I recommend setting it to start with one, as there are…

Kansas unemployment claims are high and rising

Jan

By Bob Weeks

Kansas unemployment claims are high and rising

A visualization of unemployment insurance claims by state, adjusted for population, shows Kansas as an outlier among states. The number of people filing for unemployment insurance each week is a useful indicator of the condition of the economy. I present this data for each state and the nation in an interactive visualization. Because states vary widely in their population (the most populous state has 68 times the population of the least populous), I've cast the data as claims per thousand residents of each state. (more…)

Jan

By Bob Weeks

Zip code business patterns

Employment, establishment count, and annual payroll presented in an interactive visualization. In the program County Business Patterns (CBP), the United States Census Bureau produces estimates of business activity. Data regarding employment, establishment count, and annual payroll is available for several geographies, including zip codes. I've gathered this data and present it in an interactive visualization. (more…)