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Nation's Utilities Generate More Than $400 Billion in Revenues,
Census Bureau Reports
The nation's utilities reported revenues of $412 billion and employed
nearly 703,000 workers at more than 15,000 locations in 1997, according to
economic census reports released today by the Commerce Department's Census
Bureau.
Texas, with revenues of $74 billion, and California, with revenues of
$27 billion, led all states.
Nationwide, the electric power industry generated $269 billion in
revenues, while the natural gas industry accounted for $137 billion.
The 52 reports -- one for each state, the District of Columbia and the
United States -- comprise the series titled 1997 Economic Census,
Geographic Area Series, Utilities. Released on the Internet, they
present summary data by industry for the United States, states and
metropolitan areas.
The 1997 Economic Census marks the premiere of the North American
Industry Classification System, a new business classification system that
replaces the Standard Industrial Classification system begun 60 years ago.
"The United States developed the new system jointly with Canada and
Mexico, making it much easier to compare data with our North American Free
Trade Agreement partners," said Frederick Knickerbocker, the Census
Bureau's associate director for economic programs. "It is also much easier
to update, so that economic data can keep pace with the nation's changing
economy."
Data compiled for the utilities sector are subject to nonsampling
errors. Nonsampling errors can be attributed to many sources: inability to
identify all cases in the universe; definition and classification
difficulties; differences in the interpretation of questions; errors in
recording or coding the data obtained; and other errors of collection,
response, coverage, processing and estimation for missing or misreported
data.
available free from Adobe.
