As tax season and Fiscal Cliff II get into full swing, we're highlighting our Federal Tax Collections data in the Federal Priorities Database.

Health insurance coverage data are now current through 2011 and reflect the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 1 year estimates. 

Despite the multitude of current debates about how the U.S. spends money, it’s actually very hard to track how much money the U.S. is spending. The DATA Act would help fix that, which is why it should be re-introduced in the 113 Congress.

This country is desperately in need of facts. That was the overwhelming message I took away from two exciting things that happened last week. First, there was a national conference for No Labels. The second event was at the New York Public Library, where I spoke about A People's Guide to the Federal Budget.

In the recent presidential election, were people who receive federal aid more likely to vote for President Obama? Were the wealthy more likely to vote for Mitt Romney? The Daily Beast, with an assist from NPP's Federal Priorities Database, has the answer.

U.S. Housing Units and U.S. Housing Owners and Renters are now current through 2011.

People, families, and children in poverty data are up to date through 2011.

We recently updated the Federal Priorities Database to look more like NPP's main site over at nationalpriorities.org. Some of the navigation has changed, but all the data is intact, and the searches work the same way. If you have any questions, get in touch at research@nationalpriorities.org.

We launched version 2.0 of the Federal Priorities Database a year ago. Since that time, we've been answering your questions, hearing your feedback, and keeping the information current. But we've also been thinking about what's next, and we've hatched a project called Backyard Budget.

The start of the new school year is just around the corner. Funding for education is a key issue this budget year, since budget cuts at all levels of government threaten funding for public schools.