Public & Civic Data
Public opinion asks us, in various ways:
What do people think?
Public data helps us ask a different set of questions:
What is happening? What can we measure? What does the evidence show?
The distinction matters.
Neither type of information gives us a complete picture, but using both can make our understanding of civic issues much stronger.
USAFacts
USAFacts is a nonprofit, nonpartisan civic initiative created to make government data easier for the public to access and understand. Rather than primarily asking people what they think, USAFacts organizes and explains data produced by government sources.
Why explore it: Government produces enormous amounts of information, but finding and interpreting it can be difficult. USAFacts turns much of that information into accessible charts, explanations, and comparisons that can provide useful starting points for civic questions.
It also makes an important case for public data itself: citizens need reliable information if they are going to understand their communities, evaluate public policy, and assess how government is performing.
Explore USAFacts:
https://usafacts.org/
Learn about its approach to government data:
https://usafacts.org/our-data/
U.S. Census Bureau
The U.S. Census Bureau provides extensive information about America's population, communities, housing, businesses, economy, employment, income, education, and many other aspects of American life. Its tools allow users to explore information at many geographic levels, making Census data particularly useful for learning about our own communities.
Why explore it: Civic life happens somewhere. Census data can help us understand the people and conditions in the places where we actually live.
Explore Census data:
https://data.census.gov/
Explore Census data tools and maps:
https://www.census.gov/data.html
Data.gov
Data.gov is the United States government's open-data site. Managed by the U.S. General Services Administration, it provides a central catalog for government datasets and resources from federal agencies. Its mission includes making government data useful for public and policymaker decision-making and supporting open and transparent government.
Why explore it: When a civic question sends you looking for the underlying government data, Data.gov can be a useful place to begin the search.
Explore:
https://data.gov/
Use public data to learn more about your community and the conditions around you.
Civic data can help answer questions about population, housing, education, employment, health, transportation, public spending, and other measurable conditions.
Useful starting points may include:
- U.S. Census Bureau
- Data.gov
- USAFacts
- local or state government data portals
Data can help show patterns and trends, but it still needs context. Numbers alone may not explain why something is happening or how people experience it.
Useful question:
What am I trying to understand about my community, and what kind of data might help answer it?
Return to: Public Opinion & Civic Data
