Help for Select States
Overview
DQS allows you to view aggregate data by state or for the entire United States as one observation. When a single state or the "United State" observation is selected, DQS will output the total of the selected variables (e.g., Total Revenues) for that observation. Not all types of local government exist in every state.
Notes for Use
Highlight states from left box (hold ctrl to select more than one at a time) and click on Add >> to select states for analysis. Highlight states in right box and click << Remove to deselect states.
Example: When "United States" is selected on this page, "State and Local" selected on the "Select Level" page, and "Total Revenue" selected on the "Select Series" page, DQS will output the sum of Total Revenues for all state and local governments in the entire US.
Additionally, you may use the provided buttons to automatically select all the states in a Census Region or Division.
Example: Pressing "Pacific" will automatically move Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington into the right box.
Data Availability
For some years, local government totals for counties, municipalities, townships, and school and special districts are available for the US-level data but not for individual states. These tables show which levels are available for which years.
| Availability of US Totals, by year and level |
|---|
| Years |
State and Local |
State |
Local |
Local Government Detail |
| 2008-2010 |
X |
X |
X |
|
| 2007 |
X |
X |
X |
X |
| 2004-2006 |
X |
X |
X |
|
| 2003 |
X |
X |
X |
X |
| 2002 |
X |
X |
X |
X |
| 2001 |
X |
X |
X |
X |
| 2000-1998 |
X |
X |
X |
|
| 1997 |
X |
X |
X |
X |
| 1996-1993 |
X |
X |
X |
|
| 1992-1977 |
X |
X |
X |
X |
| Availability of State Totals, by year and level |
|---|
| Years |
State and Local |
State |
Local |
Local Government Detail |
| 2008-2010 |
X |
X |
X |
|
| 2007 |
X |
X |
X |
X |
| 2004-2006 |
X |
X |
X |
|
| 2003 |
|
X |
|
|
| 2002 |
X |
X |
X |
X |
| 2001 |
|
X |
|
|
| 2000-1998 |
X |
X |
X |
|
| 1997 |
X |
X |
X |
X |
| 1996-1993 |
X |
X |
X |
|
| 1992-1977 |
X |
X |
X |
X |
Note: Except for Census of Governments years (i.e., all those ending in "2" and "7"), the local government statistics in this data are based in part on a sample of local governments. They are therefore subject to sampling variability. Estimates of statistical errors for 1992 and later years are available from the Census Bureau. For earlier years, refer to the text in the "Government Finances" report series.
WARNING: FY 2003 and 2001 data for US Total of municipalities also includes townships.
For a listing of Census Region and Division designations, see http://www.census.gov/geo/www/us_regdiv.pdf.
The Government Finance and Employment Classification Manual provides definitions for the different local governments in Chapter 1.1 - Types of Government Entities.
"The Census Bureau identified 87,525 governments during the 2002 Census of Governments. In addition to the Federal Government and the 50 state governments, the Census Bureau recognizes five basic types of local governments.
- County Governments (3,034). Organized county governments are found throughout the nation, except in Connecticut, Rhode Island, the District of Columbia, and limited portions of other states where county areas lack a distinct county government. They are created to provide general government activities in specified geographic areas. In Census Bureau statistics, counties include those entities called boroughs in Alaska and parishes in Louisiana.
- Municipal Governments (19,429). Municipalities are sub-county general purpose governments established to provide general services for a specific population concentration in a defined area. Municipal governments include cities, boroughs (except in Alaska), villages, and towns (except in the six New England states, Minnesota, New York, and Wisconsin). Consolidated city-county governments are treated as municipal governments for Census Bureau statistics.
- Township Governments (16,504). Townships are sub-county general purpose governments established to provide general services for areas without regard to population concentrations. They include towns in the six New England states, Minnesota, New York, and Wisconsin, and townships in eleven other states.
- Special District Governments (35,052). These are established to provide only one or a limited number of designated services (functions) and have sufficient administrative and fiscal autonomy to qualify as independent governments.
- School District Governments (13,506). These are created to provide public elementary, secondary and/or higher education services and have sufficient administrative and fiscal autonomy to qualify as independent governments. They exclude school systems that are 'dependent' on a county, municipal, township, or state government."
Additional information is available from Chapter 1 on -
- the definition of a government entity,
- the parent government concept,
- dependent agencies, and
- the joint activities of government.
Sources
- Government Finance and Employment Classification Manual, http://www2.census.gov/govs/pubs/classification/2006_classification_manual.pdf.
- U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances and Census of Governments (1977-2010).
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