Wisconsin 2022 Census of Agriculture Highlights

"When people think about Wisconsin agriculture, they immediately think of Wisconsin as a leader in dairy farms and cheese production. As of December 31, 2022, Wisconsin had 6,216 dairy farms, and in 2022 Wisconsin produced just over 5.2 billion pounds of cheese.

But results from the 2022 Census of Agriculture show that Wisconsin agriculture offers much more than dairy products and leads the country in several diverse categories.

According to the 2022 Census of Agriculture, Wisconsin is #1 in the following categories:

• ginseng acres
• beet acres for vegetable processing
• Chinese pea acres
• cranberry acres
• snap bean acres
• corn for silage acres
• milk goats
• mink

In addition, with just over 234,000 acres harvested for vegetables, Wisconsin leads its surrounding neighboring states in vegetable acres harvested.

Here’s a little more about Wisconsin ag: the state has 58,521 farms, 13.7 million acres of land in farms, and about 105,920 producers. In 2022, Wisconsin farms produced $16.7 billion of agricultural products and ranked 10^th among states for value of products produced. Just over 26% of Wisconsin producers in 2022 were new and beginning farmers.

Thank you, Wisconsin producers, for responding to the 2022 Census of Agriculture! Wisconsin ranked second in response rate to the ever important, once-every-five-year ag census.

Visit the Wisconsin state and county agriculture profiles for more 2022 Census of Agriculture data..."
2022 Wisconsin Census of Agriculture 

Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2022

"View or download the Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990–2022 (published April 2024) report, developed by the U.S. Government to meet annual commitments under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and also the Paris Agreement.

Read or download the entire Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2022 (PDF, 15.0 MB) or individual report chapters posted below. All data tables in the report will be available in CSV format soon.

Recommended citation: EPA (2024). Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2022 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA 430R-24004. https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/inventory-us-greenhouse-gas-emissions-and-sinks-1990-2022.

You may need a PDF reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA’s About PDF page to learn more."
Greenhouse Gas Emissions 

Fentanyl Facts

"Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. It is a major contributor to fatal and nonfatal overdoses in the U.S.¹

There are two types of fentanyl: pharmaceutical fentanyl and illegally made fentanyl. Both are considered synthetic opioids. Pharmaceutical fentanyl is prescribed by doctors to treat severe pain, especially after surgery and for advanced-stage cancer.

However, most recent cases of fentanyl-related overdose are linked to illegally made fentanyl, which is distributed through illegal drug markets for its heroin-like effect. It is often added to other drugs because of its extreme potency, which makes drugs cheaper, more powerful, more addictive, and more dangerous.

Illegally made fentanyl

Illegally made fentanyl (IMF) is available on the drug market in different forms, including liquid and powder¹.

Powdered fentanyl looks just like many other drugs. It is commonly mixed with drugs like heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine and made into pills that are made to resemble other prescription opioids. Fentanyl-laced drugs are extremely dangerous, and many people may be unaware that their drugs are laced with fentanyl.

In its liquid form, IMF can be found in nasal sprays, eye drops, and dropped onto paper or small candies.

Fentanyl and Overdose

Fentanyl and other synthetic opioids are the most common drugs involved in overdose deaths.¹ Even in small doses, it can be deadly. Over 150 people die every day from overdoses related to synthetic opioids like fentanyl.²

Drugs may contain deadly levels of fentanyl, and you wouldn’t be able to see it, taste it, or smell it. It is nearly impossible to tell if drugs have been laced with fentanyl unless you test your drugs with fentanyl test strips.

Test strips are inexpensive and typically give results within 5 minutes, which can be the difference between life or death. Even if the test is negative, take caution as test strips might not detect more potent fentanyl-like drugs, like carfentanil.^"."
Fentanyl 

Justice Outcomes Explorer (JOE)

"The Justice Outcomes Explorer (JOE) is a Census Bureau experimental data product that measures the economic and health outcomes of people who have been involved with the criminal justice system.

Criminal justice involvement can include criminal charges, prison releases, and probation and parole sentences. Outcomes measured include employment, earnings, government program participation, and mortality.

JOE is a collaboration between the U.S. Census Bureau and the University of Michigan that uses Criminal Justice Administrative Records System (CJARS) data to better understand how people involved in the justice system reintegrate into society.

JOE covers criminal justice system involvement at any point between 2000 and 2020. Actual coverage of justice involvement depends on the coverage of agencies in the CJARS data, while coverage of outcomes depends on the availability of source data at the Census Bureau.

Data users can download JOE data below or interact directly with the JOE data using the data visualization tool hosted by the University of Michigan. The tool includes additional justice-related outcomes created from CJARS without Census Bureau data..."
Justice Outcomes Explorer 

Elder Fraud, in Focus

"The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (or IC3) released the 2023 edition of its annual Elder Fraud Report on April 30, 2024.

Elder fraud complaints to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (or IC3) increased by 14% in 2023, and associated losses increased by about 11%, according to IC3’s 2023 Elder Fraud Report, released April 30.  

This annual publication provides statistics about incidents of elder fraud—or fraud that explicitly targets older Americans’ money or cryptocurrency—that are reported to IC3. The report aims to raise the public’s awareness of this issue and to prevent future and repeat incidents. 

“Combatting the financial exploitation of those over 60 years of age continues to be a priority of the FBI,” wrote FBI Assistant Director Michael D. Nordwall, who leads the Bureau’s Criminal Investigative Division, in the report. “Along with our partners, we continually work to aid victims and to identify and investigate the individuals and criminal organizations that perpetrate these schemes and target the elderly.” 

And elder fraud is probably a more insidious threat than the report shows. Many of these crimes likely go unreported, and, as the report states, “only about half” of the fraud scam complaints submitted to IC3 in 2023 included victims’ ages..."
Elder Fraud