Inflation has been defined as a process of continuously rising prices, or equivalently, of a continuously falling value of money. In other words, inflation causes the buying power of a dollar to decrease over time. A 15 cent hamburger in 1966 seems to us a lot cheaper than the 79-cent hamburger of today. But when the price of that 1966 burger is adjusted for inflation, the price is comparable.
Office of Financial Management
Forecasting and Research Division
P.O. Box 43124
Olympia, WA 98504-3124
360-902-0599 -- Main Reception
360-586-1988 -- Fax
OFM produces annual population estimates for ‘special areas’ required by statue. Special areas include highway urban areas, public transportation benefit areas, and the thermal electric generating facility area. The special area estimates are based on data produced by the Small Area Estimate Program using GIS-based spatial interpolation procedures.
Census geographic files: TIGER/Line shapefiles for select Census 2000, 2010 and 2020 geographic areas. Includes a limited number of population and housing variables from the decennial census. Geographic crosswalks and map products are also available.
The State Data Center (SDC) program is a cooperative program between the states and the Census Bureau created in 1978 to make data available locally to the public through a network of state agencies, universities, libraries, and regional and local governments. The Business and Industry Data Center (BIDC) program was added in 1988 to meet the needs of local business communities for economic data. The Office of Financial Management is the state agency responsible for administering these programs in Washington state.
