This sidebar accompanies Gregory Orfalea’s feature, “The Exceptional State.”
Notes
[a] The three “happiest” states are Minnesota, Utah, and Hawaii, according to an academic study that calculated scores based on the following indicators: emotional and physical well-being; work environment; and community and environment.
[b] Only Hawaii has a lower death rate.
[c] Only New York is higher in public school teacher salaries.
[d] Fourth highest police protection outside of Washington, D.C. ($851 per capita), Alaska ($492 per capita), and New York ($484).
[e] Only Alaska, Washington, D.C., and Delaware are higher in per-capita expenditure of justice and legal services.
[f] Only Virginia receives more federal funds for defense.
[g] Connecticut, Washington, D.C., Massachusetts, and New York have a higher average wage.
[h] No state comes close to California in GDP; CA is 13 percent of the entire nation’s GDP.
[i] No state comes close to California in personal income; California is nearly double that of next closest states (New York and Texas).
[j] Only Wyoming has a greater percentage of degrees confirmed as science or engineering.
[k] California is 18 percent of total agricultural proceeds in the United States. California is No. 1 in production of: vegetables (broccoli, cabbage, cantaloupes, carrots, cauliflower, celery, garlic, lettuce, peas, onions, bell peppers, tomatoes); and fruits (dates, figs, lemons, nectarines, olives, peaches, raspberries, strawberries, tangerines). Florida is slightly higher in oranges.
[l] Only Alaska has more National Forest lands.
[m] 15 percent of all information companies in the U.S. are in California.
[n] 12.6 percent of all visits to national parks in the U.S. are in California. No. 1 is Washington, D.C., and No. 3 is Virginia.
[o] Texas is No. 1 in exports at $264 billion.
