Journalists looking for reliable statistical data will utilize many sources, both governmental and private. The list is endless. But a starting point for governmental sources will include the following:
A major link to all federal agencies is Fedworld, and from there one can search for items by category or by agency.
The homepage for the Bureau of Labor Statistics, allows you to search for national, regional and metro statistics dealing with labor and the economy. For additional statistics dealing with these issues, enter the homepage for this agency's parent, The U. S. Department of Labor.
Of course a source of much demographic material is the U. S. Census Bureau, which contains material from the 2000 Census and some updated material as well. The Census Bureau can also lead you to the the County and City Databook, which contains a great deal of information on large cities and all counties. Also accessed through the Census Bureau is the Statistical Abstract of the United States, which contains a great deal of information about cities, states and the economy. You may access cities or counties by utilizing the map. Another handy point to search for regional information is FedStats. It provides many federal statistics, often broken down into regions or local jurisdictions.
The homepage for the State of Washington government has links to local government as well as state agencies and services. Material on Washington cities may also be found on a municipal research site, which has information on Washington counties as well.
The City of Bellingham site will take you to City Council data, the Library and a host of other local information, including data for Whatcom County. For Whatcom County, a seperate site will include material on the County Council as well as other county data.
A good source of environmental news, including both current news and deep background, is maintained by Ecotrust, a nonprofit organization headquartered in Portland, and maintaining a site called Tidepool.
If you want to check the pulse of the nation, try the People and the Press, operated by the Pew Center (formally the Times-Mirror polling service.
One of many good sites for nonpartisan election and political information is Project Vote Smart, which has both national and local information.