Peer indicators

What this dataset measures

Built to test whether California's spending growth has produced results that outpace comparable states. The peer group (the other three most populous states plus the U.S. average) was fixed in advance to avoid choosing favorable comparisons; Mississippi is included only as a labeled schools case study and rail projects are the main U.S. comparables.

Geography

United States, California, Texas, Florida, New York, Mississippi

Unit of observation

State (or project) and period, by indicator

Update cadence

Irregular

Curator

FactHub

Curated data tables

Peer indicators

One row per indicator, geography and period. Codes: spend_pc (state spending per resident, USD); tax_pc (state and local taxes per resident, USD); homeless_rate (per 10,000 residents); unsheltered_pct; permits_rate (housing units permitted per 1,000 residents, annual average); pupil_spend (current spending per pupil, USD); naep_change (sum of 2013-2024 changes across four NAEP tests, points); naep_g4r (grade 4 reading scale score); naep_adj_rank (Urban Institute adjusted average rank, 1 = best); mcaid_real_growth (percent); mcaid_per_enrollee (USD); uninsured_pct; rail_cost_mi (USD millions per mile).

Unit of observation: Indicator, geography and period

peer.csv text/csv · 3.5 KB (3,547 bytes)

All 90 rows 5 columns Download the file

All 90 rows

code	geo	period	value varies by code	source_id
spend_pc	CA	2012	5242	nasbo-2012
spend_pc	TX	2012	3567	nasbo-2012
spend_pc	FL	2012	3261	nasbo-2012
spend_pc	NY	2012	6822	nasbo-2012
spend_pc	US	2012	5237	nasbo-2012
spend_pc	CA	2024	11501	kff-nasbo-2024
spend_pc	TX	2024	4617	kff-nasbo-2024
spend_pc	FL	2024	5611	kff-nasbo-2024
spend_pc	NY	2024	11743	kff-nasbo-2024
spend_pc	US	2024	8958	kff-nasbo-2024
tax_pc	CA	2023	8942	taxfound-2026
tax_pc	TX	2023	5737	taxfound-2026
tax_pc	FL	2023	5141	taxfound-2026
tax_pc	NY	2023	12506	taxfound-2026
tax_pc	US	2023	7038	taxfound-2026
homeless_rate	CA	2015	29.6	hud-popsub
homeless_rate	TX	2015	8.6	hud-popsub
homeless_rate	FL	2015	17.7	hud-popsub
homeless_rate	NY	2015	44.6	hud-popsub
homeless_rate	US	2015	17.6	hud-popsub
homeless_rate	CA	2025	46.2	hud-popsub
homeless_rate	TX	2025	8.8	hud-popsub
homeless_rate	FL	2025	11.9	hud-popsub
homeless_rate	NY	2025	72.8	hud-popsub
homeless_rate	US	2025	21.8	hud-popsub
unsheltered_pct	CA	2025	63.5	hud-popsub
unsheltered_pct	TX	2025	43.4	hud-popsub
unsheltered_pct	FL	2025	47.2	hud-popsub
unsheltered_pct	NY	2025	4.0	hud-popsub
unsheltered_pct	US	2025	35.7	hud-popsub
permits_rate	CA	2010-2025	2.39	fred-permits
permits_rate	TX	2010-2025	6.3	fred-permits
permits_rate	FL	2010-2025	6.0	fred-permits
permits_rate	NY	2010-2025	1.89	fred-permits
permits_rate	US	2010-2025	3.77	fred-permits
pupil_spend	CA	2013	9220	census-school-2013
pupil_spend	TX	2013	8299	census-school-2013
pupil_spend	FL	2013	8433	census-school-2013
pupil_spend	NY	2013	19818	census-school-2013
pupil_spend	MS	2013	8130	census-school-2013
pupil_spend	US	2013	10700	census-school-2013
pupil_spend	CA	2024	20791	census-school-2024
pupil_spend	TX	2024	12895	census-school-2024
pupil_spend	FL	2024	12693	census-school-2024
pupil_spend	NY	2024	31918	census-school-2024
pupil_spend	MS	2024	12324	census-school-2024
pupil_spend	US	2024	17619	census-school-2024
naep_change	CA	2013-2024	-17	nces-naep
naep_change	TX	2013-2024	-37	nces-naep
naep_change	FL	2013-2024	-35	nces-naep
naep_change	NY	2013-2024	-35	nces-naep
naep_change	MS	2013-2024	16	nces-naep
naep_change	US	2013-2024	-32	nces-naep
naep_g4r	CA	2013	213	nces-naep
naep_g4r	CA	2024	212	nces-naep
naep_g4r	MS	2013	209	nces-naep
naep_g4r	MS	2024	219	nces-naep
naep_g4r	US	2013	221	nces-naep
naep_g4r	US	2024	214	nces-naep
naep_adj_rank	CA	2022	19.0	urban-2022
naep_adj_rank	TX	2022	4.8	urban-2022
naep_adj_rank	FL	2022	3.5	urban-2022
naep_adj_rank	NY	2022	18.5	urban-2022
naep_adj_rank	MS	2022	3.5	urban-2022
mcaid_real_growth	CA	2013-2024	77	macpac
mcaid_real_growth	TX	2013-2024	26	macpac
mcaid_real_growth	FL	2013-2024	39	macpac
mcaid_real_growth	NY	2013-2024	35	macpac
mcaid_real_growth	US	2013-2024	55	macpac
mcaid_per_enrollee	CA	2024	8745	kff-medicaid
mcaid_per_enrollee	TX	2024	9087	kff-medicaid
mcaid_per_enrollee	FL	2024	5788	kff-medicaid
mcaid_per_enrollee	NY	2024	10525	kff-medicaid
mcaid_per_enrollee	US	2024	8606	kff-medicaid
uninsured_pct	CA	2013	17.2	acs-s2701
uninsured_pct	CA	2025	6.1	acs-s2701
uninsured_pct	TX	2013	22.1	acs-s2701
uninsured_pct	TX	2025	16.5	acs-s2701
uninsured_pct	FL	2013	20.0	acs-s2701
uninsured_pct	FL	2025	10.5	acs-s2701
uninsured_pct	NY	2013	10.7	acs-s2701
uninsured_pct	NY	2025	4.7	acs-s2701
uninsured_pct	US	2013	14.5	acs-s2701
uninsured_pct	US	2025	8.4	acs-s2701
rail_cost_mi	CA-HSR	2026	255	lao-hsr-2026
rail_cost_mi	TX-Central	2025	125	tx-tribune-2025
rail_cost_mi	BL-West	2025	99	enr-2025
rail_cost_mi	BL-Florida	2023	26	skift-2023
rail_cost_mi	Europe	2014	51	worldbank-2014
rail_cost_mi	China	2014	31	worldbank-2014

5 field definitions

Field	Type	Meaning	Units	Value type
code	string	Indicator code (see table description)	—	observed
geo	string	State postal code, US, or rail project name	—	observed
period	string	Year, fiscal year or range	—	observed
value	number	Indicator value in the units given for its code	varies by code	derived
source_id	string	Id of the source in sources[]	—	observed

Sources

1. NASBO State Expenditure Report, Fiscal 2011-2013, Table 1 (mirror at prisonpolicy.org) FY2012 total state expenditures (capital inclusive), divided by 2012 ACS population (FactHub calculation).

   Retrieved October 30, 2026. Public agency document. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

   Reliability: Other. National Association of State Budget Officers; standardized state spending survey, all funds including federal. Read via a third-party mirror.

2. KFF State Health Facts, Per Capita State Spending (from NASBO State Expenditure Report FY2023-25) SFY2024 total state spending per resident.

   Retrieved October 30, 2026. Third-party compilation. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

   Reliability: Other. KFF adjusts NASBO figures; not identical in method to the raw FY2012 NASBO totals.

3. Tax Foundation, State and Local Tax Collections Per Capita by State, 2026 (May 11, 2026) FY2023 state and local tax collections per resident, from Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances.

   Retrieved October 30, 2026. Third-party compilation. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

   Reliability: Advocacy group. Market-oriented think tank compiling Census data; per-resident collections include taxes paid by businesses and nonresidents and are not shares of income.

4. HUD Continuum of Care Homeless Populations and Subpopulations reports, by state, 2015 and 2025 Total and unsheltered point-in-time counts by state; rates per 10,000 are FactHub calculations using Census population estimates.

   Retrieved October 30, 2026. Public agency document. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

   Reliability: Government. Federal compilation of local one-night counts; methods vary by community and counts likely understate homelessness. Figures transcribed from PDF tables (same URL pattern for TX, FL, NY and the national file).

5. Census Building Permits Survey via FRED (CABPPRIV, TXBPPRIV, FLBPPRIV, NYBPPRIV, PERMITNSA) and Census population (CAPOP etc.) Annual average new private housing units authorized per 1,000 residents, 2010-2025 (FactHub calculation).

   Retrieved October 30, 2026. Public agency document. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

   Reliability: Government. Permits count authorizations, not completions; monthly state figures include Census imputation.

6. U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Annual Survey of School System Finances release (May 7, 2026) and state table reproductions FY2024 current spending per pupil: U.S., New York and Mississippi from the Census release; California, Texas and Florida from secondary reproductions of Census summary tables.

   Retrieved October 30, 2026. Public agency document. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

   Reliability: Government. Not adjusted for inflation or cost-of-living differences between areas.

7. U.S. Census Bureau, Public Education Finances 2013 (release CB15-98, June 2, 2015), as reproduced by Ballotpedia FY2013 current spending per pupil.

   Retrieved October 30, 2026. Public agency document. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

   Reliability: Government. Census figures read through a reproduction of Table 20; California's figure matches contemporary news coverage.

8. NCES, NAEP State Snapshot Reports, 2013 and 2024 Average scale scores for public school students, grades 4 and 8, reading and math (other states' PDFs follow the same naming pattern).

   Retrieved October 30, 2026. Public agency document. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

   Reliability: Government. Changes from 2013 to 2024 were not all tested for statistical significance; NCES compares 2024 with 2022 and the first assessment year.

9. Urban Institute, States' Demographically Adjusted Performance on the 2022 Nation's Report Card (Dec. 4, 2024) Average rank across four NAEP tests after adjusting for student demographics.

   Retrieved October 30, 2026. Research report. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

   Reliability: Academic. Adjusts for age, gender, race, poverty, special education and English-learner status; 2024 ranks were not extracted.

10. MACPAC MACStats, Medicaid Spending by State, FY2013 (March 2014, Table 6) and FY2024 (January 2026, Exhibit 16) Total Medicaid spending by state; real growth computed by FactHub with CPI-U.

    Retrieved October 30, 2026. Public agency document. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

    Reliability: Government. Congressional advisory commission using CMS-64 data; California and New York expanded Medicaid under the ACA, Texas and Florida did not.

11. KFF, Medicaid Spending per Full-Benefit Enrollee, 2024 (preliminary) Spending per full-benefit enrollee by state.

    Retrieved October 30, 2026. Third-party compilation. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

    Reliability: Other. Preliminary T-MSIS-based estimates; excludes drug rebates and most supplemental payments.

12. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-year, Table S2701 (2013 and 2025) Percent uninsured by state.

    Retrieved October 30, 2026. Public agency document. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

    Reliability: Government. Survey estimates with margins of error of about 0.1-0.2 points.

13. Legislative Analyst's Office handout, High-Speed Rail Draft 2026 Business Plan (Senate Transportation Committee, April 27, 2026) Phase I cost estimate of $126 billion for the ~494-mile system; FactHub divides to get cost per mile.

    Retrieved October 30, 2026. Public agency document. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

    Reliability: Government. Nonpartisan legislative analyst summarizing the Authority's draft plan.

14. Texas Tribune, Texas high-speed rail planning grant cut (April 14, 2025) Texas Central estimated cost of more than $30 billion for roughly 240 miles (length approximate).

    Retrieved October 30, 2026. News article. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

    Reliability: News report. News report; USDOT put the cost above $40 billion, which would raise the per-mile figure.

15. ENR, Brightline West costs rise 35% (Oct. 10, 2025) Brightline West reported cost of about $21.5 billion for 218 miles.

    Retrieved October 30, 2026. News article. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

    Reliability: News report. Trade-press figure not confirmed by the company.

16. Skift, Brightline opens $6 billion Florida rail line (Sept. 22, 2023) Brightline Florida cost of about $6 billion for 235 miles at up to 125 mph.

    Retrieved October 30, 2026. News article. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

    Reliability: News report. Brightline is not true high-speed rail and partly uses an existing freight corridor; its parent companies filed for Chapter 11 in September 2026.

17. World Bank, Cost of high speed rail in China one third lower than in other countries (July 10, 2014) Typical infrastructure unit costs: China $17-21 million per km, Europe $25-39 million per km; FactHub converts midpoints to per-mile.

    Retrieved October 30, 2026. Public agency document. Figures only; linked, not rehosted.

    Reliability: Intergovernmental. 2014 dollars, not adjusted; infrastructure cost only.

Limitations and reproducibility

Reproducible from public sources: Each row was transcribed from the source named in source_id; rates, growth percentages and per-mile costs are FactHub calculations described in each analysis (Python script kept by the curator).

• Several figures were read from PDF tables or secondary reproductions of official tables rather than machine-readable files; see each source's role.
• Spending figures are nominal unless an analysis says it adjusts for inflation (CPI-U); none adjust for differences in living costs between states.
• Per-resident state spending includes federal funds, which grew faster in states that expanded Medicaid.
• Point-in-time homeless counts are one-night estimates with methods that vary by community.
• Rail costs per mile combine different years, currencies and project types and are approximate.