On Thursday, many Americans will be reflecting on their memories and the impact of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, along with honoring the victims, their families — and, of course, New York City’s first responders. 

Emergency staffing stats in the U.S. as of 2023: 

Distressed 

A few editions ago, we noted individual and cumulative metrics on financial distress across the country and in Nevada, so consider this a follow up: 

Gassing Up 

Longtime Fact Pack readers know we occasionally compare Nevada gas prices to the U.S average and to our neighbor to the west. Now that Labor Day is behind us, we thought the data would be timely for those recovering from summer vacation sticker shock. 

As of 9/8/25 at 3 p.m. 

The lowest prices on fuel in Nevada as of Monday, Sept. 8, at 3 p.m. were in Pahrump, Winnemucca, Wells, and Battle Mountain gas stations: 

As of Monday, Sept. 8, at 3 p.m. 

Best prices in Reno, same day and time: 

As of Monday, Sept. 8, at 3 p.m. 

Helpful map for Reno-Sparks residents: 

As of Monday, Sept. 8, at 3 p.m. 

Clark County: 

As of Monday, Sept. 8, at 3 p.m. 

Post-Hurricane Debby Port Reports 

U.S. ports that were affected by Hurricane Debby in August collectively import and export of hundreds of billions of dollars of goods annually. Disruptions to port activities during and after the storm were expected to affect supply chains, including in: 

• Automaking — 19 percent of American car exports, worth $29 billion in 2023, left through ports in Florida, Georgia, and South Caroline region. Notably, Brunswick, Georgia, which accounted for $19 billion of that total. 

• Industrial Machinery Production 

• Aircraft Manufacturing and Assembly 

The National Geodetic Survey (NGS) has been collecting aerial damage assessment images in the aftermath of the storm, and the Census Bureau has gathered the following information about import-export activities in the region. 

Coming in: 

As of 2023 

Going out: 

As of 2023 

Key damage assessment data from federal agencies as of Sept. 8, 2025: 

• Total Flood Damage: Estimated at $12.3 billion.  

• Affected Properties: Approximately 385,000 properties were affected by flooding.  

• Agricultural Impact: Over 2.2 million acres of agricultural lands were affected, with impacts on Field and Row Crops, Animals and Animal Products, Citrus, and Vegetables. 

Nevada Weather Event History 

Major weather events affecting Nevada have included devastating floods and persistent, multi-year droughts. However, Nevada’s biggest weather events are often part of larger, regional Western disasters, making it difficult to dig into the state’s specific damage assessments.  

Here’s what we were able to find related to Nevada by way of internet searches and government websites: 

• 2023 Hurricane Hilary: Remnants of the storm caused flash flooding and washed away roads in Nevada, resulting in an estimated $25 million in damage. 

• 2022 Western/Central Drought and Heat Wave: With a CPI-adjusted cost of $23.5 billion, this multi-state event was one of the costliest droughts on record. The drought substantially impacted Nevada, depleting water levels in the state’s largest reservoir, Lake Mead, to record lows. 

• 2021 Western Wildfires: Fueled by drought and extreme heat, the fire season cost $12.1 billion. Though primarily affecting California, wildfires there and neighboring states created hazardous air quality in Nevada due to increased smoke particulates. 

• 2021 Western Drought and Heat Wave: This multi-state “event” had a total cost of $10.2 billion. It intensified drought conditions across the Mountain West and caused a historic heat wave that set record temperatures. 

Jobless College Grads 

The chart below compares the unemployment rate of recent college graduates (ages 22 to 27) with that of all workers in the U.S. from 1990 to June 2025, using data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. From 1990 through most of the 2010s, new college grads typically enjoyed lower unemployment than the overall national unemployment rate. 

As of May 2025 

Leading into the COVID-19 pandemic, new grads briefly had a higher unemployment rate, with AI advances post-pandemic exacerbating the trend, but according to federal data, in June of 2025, recent college grads faced a 4.8 percent unemployment rate — higher than the 4.0 percent rate for all workers. 

Who Wants to be a Billionaire? 

Here’s how other humans did it: 

As of 3/7/25 

Peopled 

“The first inhabitants of what is now the United States appeared around 15,000 to 20,000 years ago — a blip in time compared to the annals of some of the earliest places humans lived.” 

So begins this HistoryFacts.com write-up on the North American continent’s geographic isolation and the effect of Europeans (eventually) making their way to the Americas in the 16th and 17th centuries. Data provided in the article: 

• It’s believed some 230,000 people were living in what is now called America by 10,000 BCE, and by 1 CE, an estimated 640,000 people were living in what is now the United States.  

• By 1100 CE, a settlement known as Cahokia, located across the Mississippi River from modern-day St. Louis, was home to about 20,000 people. 

• The population continued to grow, and by 1400, there were an estimated 1.74 million people in what is now modern-day U.S. 

• When Christopher Columbus landed in the Caribbean in 1492, that number had increased by nearly 150,000 people. 

• In the years that followed, as other European explorers began to map and claim parts of North America, waves of disease, displacement, and armed conflict had a major effect on the population. In the modern-day U.S., the population dropped almost 60 percent between the years 1500 and 1600, from 1.89 million to 779,000. 

Fast forward to the period from the American Revolution through the end of World War II: In 1790, the first U.S. Census Bureau survey counted 3.9 million people living in the brand-new country called America. 

• Ten years after the first U.S. census, in 1800, the American population had shot up by almost 1.4 million people to reach 5.3 million, surging to 23 million by 1850 (fueled largely by a wave of European immigration to the U.S. amid the Industrial Revolution). 

Source: “Statistical Atlas” by William R. Merriam, Director

Published by United States Census Office, Washington

 

As of 1880 

Closeup of Mountain West region as of 1880 

Source: “Statistical Atlas” by William R. Merriam, Director 



Published by United States Census Office, Washington 

• By 1900, the country was home to 76 million people, a number that included the country’s remaining Indigenous residents. 

• America’s population continued to grow during the early 20th century, reaching about 148 million by 1945. 

Immigration has been the main driver of the country’s population growth since 1970, and that trend is expected to continue — to a degree. In 2023, the Census Bureau projected that sustaining a diverse, strategically managed immigration ratio would help balance the social and economic engine of the nation. 

In 2024, the U.S. Census Bureau counted America’s population at 337 million people, the all-time high. Lower birth rates following the “baby boom” and an aging population means death rates are projected to meet or exceed births going forward. 

The U.S. population is expected to peak at around 370 million by 2080, then decline to 366 million by 2100, barring unknown factors and events.

In Self-Driving We Do Not Trust 

Trust in self-driving cars is highest in emerging markets like India, Pakistan, Brazil, and China, whereas advanced economies like the U.S. show higher skepticism, with 51 percent of respondents saying they would not trust self-driving cars at all. 

Globally, nearly three-quarters of respondents express only limited or no trust, highlighting a major challenge for widespread adoption. 

Source: Veroni / Visual Capitalist 

As of 2024 

On the Horizon

Marketwatch calendar: 

Data & Dialogue About the Economy



The Fact Pack is a monthly business e-report co-authored by Mike PeQueen of Hightower Las Vegas and John Restrepo of RCG Economics, which combines important metrics relevant to business decision makers and financial commentary on the current issues facing the economy.

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