- Nickname: Cornhusker State
- Motto: Equality before the law
- Flower: Goldenrod
- Bird: Western meadowlark
- Area: 77,353 square miles (2000; U.S. rank: 16th)
- Elevation: Ranges from 840 feet to 5,426 feet
above sea level
- Climate: Continental, with wide variations of
temperature: intensely hot summers, and severely cold
winters. Rainfall twice as heavy in east as in west
- Admitted to Union: March 1, 1867
- Capital: Lincoln
- Head Official: Governor David Heineman (R) (until
2007)
- Population
- 1980: 1,570,000
- 1990: 1,578,385
- 2000: 1,711,263
- 2004 estimate: 1,747,214
- Percent change, 1990–2000: 8.4%
- U.S. rank in 2004: 38th
- Percent of residents born in state: 67.1% (2000)
- Density: 22.3 people per square mile (2000)
- 2002 FBI Crime Index Total: 73,606
- Racial and Ethnic Characteristics (2000)
- White: 1,533,261
- Black or African American: 68,541
- American Indian and Alaska Native: 14,896
- Asian: 21,931
- Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander: 836
- Hispanic or Latino (may be of any race): 94,425
- Other: 47,845
- Age Characteristics (2000)
- Population under 5 years old: 117,048
- Population 5 to 19 years old: 387,288
- Percent of population 65 years and over: 13.6%
- Median age: 35.3 years (2000)
- Vital Statistics
- Total number of births (2003): 25,760
- Total number of deaths (2003): 15,444 (infant
deaths, 145)
- AIDS cases reported through 2003: 598
- Economy
- Major industries: Finance, insurance, and real
estate; trade; agriculture; manufacturing; services
- Unemployment rate: 3.9% (April 2005)
- Per capita income: $30,331 (2003; U.S. rank: 24)
- Median household income: $44,357 (3-year average,
2001-2003)
- Percentage of persons below poverty level: 9.9%
(3-year average, 2001-2003)
- Income tax rate: Graduated from 2.56% to 6.84%
(2000; rate set yearly by state legislature)
- Sales tax rate: 5.5%
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