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Nebraska Facts and Figures from Encarta Go to article
General Information
Capital Lincoln
Statehood March 1, 1867
the 37th state
State nickname The Cornhusker State
Name for residents Nebraskans
State motto Equality before the law
Abbreviation NE
Nebraska State Flag
Nebraska State Flag
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Nebraska State FlagNebraska State Flag Nebraska State Bird: Western MeadowlarkNebraska State Bird: Western Meadowlark Nebraska State Flower: GoldenrodNebraska State Flower: Goldenrod
Nebraska State Tree: CottonwoodNebraska State Tree: Cottonwood Nebraska State SealNebraska State Seal
Land
Total area 200,346 sq km
77,354 sq mi
Rank among states in total area 16th
Land area 199,109 sq km
76,877 sq mi
Highest point Kimball County
1,653 m/5,424 ft
Forested land as a share of total area 1.9 percent (2002)
Federally owned land as a share of land area 3 percent (2002)
People
Population 1,768,331 (2006 estimate)
Rank among states in population 38th
Ten-year population growth 8.4 percent (1990-2000)
Population density 8.9 persons per sq km (2006 estimate)
23 persons per sq mi (2006 estimate)
Urban population 69.8 percent (2000)
Largest cities (by population)
Omaha 414,521 (2005 estimate)
Lincoln 239,213 (2005 estimate)
Bellevue 47,334 (2005 estimate)
Grand Island 44,546 (2005 estimate)
Kearney 28,958 (2005 estimate)
Ethnic groups
Whites 89.6 percent (2000)
Blacks 4 percent (2000)
Asians 1.3 percent (2000)
Native Americans 0.9 percent (2000)
Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders less than 0.1 percent (2000)
Mixed heritage or not reporting 4.2 percent (2000)
Hispanics (of any race) 5.5 percent (2000)
Health and Education
Life expectancy 76.9 years (1989-1991)
Infant mortality rate 7 deaths per 1,000 live births (2002)
Residents per physician 418 people (2004)
Residents per hospital bed 238 people (2004)
Share of population not covered by health insurance 11.4 percent (2004)
Number of students per teacher (K-12) 13.6 (2003)
Government spending per student (K-12) $9,371 (2002-2003)
Share of students attending private school 14.6 percent (1999)
Share of people over age 25 with high school diploma 91.3 percent (2004)
Government
State government
Governor Dave Heineman
(term ends January 2011)
Legislature Unicameral, 49 members
National representation
Members of the U.S. Senate 2
Members of the U.S. House of Representatives 3
Electoral votes 5
Economy
Gross state product (GSP) $71 billion (2005 approximate)
Income per capita $32,276 (2004)
GSP by economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing 5 percent (2004)
Industry
Construction 4.4 percent (2004)
Manufacturing 12.2 percent (2004)
Mining 0.1 percent (2004)
Transportation and utilities 8.4 percent (2004)
Services
Finance, insurance, and real estate 17 percent (2004)
Government 14.8 percent (2004)
Information technology 4 percent (2004)
Retail trade 6.7 percent (2004)
Wholesale trade 6.7 percent (2004)
Other services 21.1 percent (2004)
Employment
Number of workers 974,000 (2006 estimate)
Unemployment rate 3 percent (2006 estimate)
Share of workers in unions 8.3 percent (2005)
Energy, Communications, and Transportation
Electricity production
Share from geothermal, solar, and wind 0.4 percent (2005 estimate)
Share from hydroelectric 2.8 percent (2005 estimate)
Share from nuclear 28 percent (2005 estimate)
Share from thermal 68.8 percent (2005 estimate)
Daily newspaper circulation per 1,000 people 225 newspapers per 1,000 people (2005 estimate)
Share of households with Internet access 55.4 percent (2003 estimate)
Number of library books circulated per resident 8.7 books per person (2002)
Length of highways 150,063 km (2004)
93,245 mi (2004)
Length of interstate highways 776 km (2004)
482 mi (2004)
Length of railroad tracks 5,597 km (2004)
3,478 mi (2004)
Airports 8 (2007)
Sources
The Association of American Railroads (www.aar.org), Bureau of Economic Analysis (www.bea.doc.gov), Bureau of Labor Statistics (www.bls.gov), Census Bureau (www.census.gov), Energy Information Administration (www.eia.doe.gov), Federal Aviation Administration (www.faa.gov), Federal Highway Administration (www.fhwa.dot.gov), Forest Service (www.fs.fed.us), General Services Administration (www.gsa.gov), National Agricultural Statistics Service (www.usda.gov/nass), National Center for Education Statistics (nces.ed.gov), National Center for Health Statistics (www.cdc.gov/nchs), National Telecommunications and Information Administration (www.ntia.doc.gov).
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