This report contains eight tables describing the use of the General Educational Development Tests (GED) in 1986 as well as comparative trends since 1949. The tables report statistics for the 50 states, U.S. territories, and the provinces of Canada. The tables report the following: (1) testing volumes by jurisdiction; (2) percent tested by age group; (3) testing by language (English, Spanish, French) and special edition (audiocassette, braille, large print); (4) highest grade completed; (5) additional data; (6) credentials issued, 1971-1986; (7) comparative testing data, 1949-1986; and (8) minimum score requirements. The report summary highlights some of the statistics. During 1986, 739,683 people (up 4 percent from 1985) took the GED tests, and 489,629 examinees earned scores that qualified them for an equivalency credential. The average age of the 1986 examinees was 26.5 years. More than 28 percent of the examinees were 19 years old or younger, 43 percent were between 20-29 years, 18 percent were 30-39, and 11 percent were over 40 years old. The examinees completed an average of 9.9 years of schooling, and more than half reported that they were planning to continue their education or training beyond the high school level. The six states testing the largest number of examinees were New York, Texas, California, Florida, Illinois, and Michigan. The report summary concludes that the GED testing program has enabled more than six million adults to obtain a high school equivalency credential since 1971, and that, annually, one of every seven high school diplomas in the United States is issued based on results from the GED Tests. (KC)