The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) with the National Endowment for the Arts released a report today measuring the arts and culture sector’s contributions to U.S. gross domestic product (GDP), for the second year in a row. This year’s report finds the arts and culture sector representing 4.32 percent of the GDP – a higher percentage than transportation and construction – at $698.7 billion! These numbers are the result of the BEA refining and improving their methodology to create this new baseline that will be updated annually.

In December 2013, this data was collected for the first time. Last year’s report found that arts and culture activity produce $504 billion dollars in goods and services annually in the U.S., representing 3.25 percent of the nation’s economy.

“With the creation of new data analyses like this one – which shows how arts and culture contribute to GDP – the Department of Commerce is providing a more detailed picture of what drives the U.S. economy, growth, and job creation,” said Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker. “Making new data available is another example of how the government is working harder and smarter to produce relevant statistics that better inform individuals, businesses, and decision-makers.”

Read the Bureau of Economic Analysis’s full press release below.