Since its founding, CABL has always placed data at the forefront of its public policy work. Over the years, we have produced many resources driven by data that aim to point out our state’s most pressing issues and identify data-driven solutions that help move Louisiana forward. A popular resource for the first decade of the 2000s was our Louisiana Fact Book, a compilation of factual information, published every two years, that shed light on many aspects of life in our state.
Keeping with our history and our mission to provide easy-to-understand information that any citizen can use, we have developed a new online resource in the spirit of the Louisiana Fact Book. This updated, online publication includes a comprehensive list of 35 indicators that measure the wellbeing of our state in five key areas.
- Education & Workforce
- Economy
- Health & Wellbeing
- Infrastructure
- Environment & Energy
When viewed collectively, these indicators paint a picture of Louisiana that can help us assess the challenges we are currently facing and help us understand the priorities we must focus on to create a better Louisiana.
Each indicator comes with an individual data point, an explanation of why it’s important, and an arrow showing if the state has improved or declined over the previous year. Each data point is supplemented with a corresponding note that provides additional background and recent trends. Taken as a whole, they are intended to help candidates and citizens understand how we compare with other states and if we are seeing progress.
Overall, the results are disappointing. They show that Louisiana made progress over the prior year on 18 indicators, but moved in the wrong direction on 13 and saw no change on 4. Adding to the concern is that Louisiana already ranks low compared to other states on many of the indicators, including a large number of the ones where the state saw declines.
These indicators do not represent every issue of importance to Louisiana. There are many others that could be included. But CABL believes the breadth of issues included in the Louisiana Fact Book can help provide clarity on the things that are holding us back, recognize progress where we see it, and highlight the challenges we must overcome to make Louisiana the dynamic and prosperous state every citizen deserves.
CABL intends to highlight many of the individual indicators during the election season as part of its efforts to raise awareness of critical issues important to the future of the state.
This is an important year for Louisiana. With the upcoming election of a new governor and many legislators, there is no better time for us to pause for a moment, assess where we stand, and focus on the matters that are most critical for moving Louisiana forward. We hope the citizens and the candidates currently running for office will do the same.