Summary of Cooperative Agreement Award

The Bureau of Labor Statistics awarded a Cooperative Agreement totaling $1.181 million to Kentucky's Education and Labor Cabinet, effective October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2026, under the Labor Force Statistics program (CFDA 17.002). The awardee will provide comprehensive statistical data collection and reporting for four core federal labor market information (LMI) programs: Current Employment Statistics (CES), Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS), Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), and Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). These programs generate critical employment, unemployment, wages, hours, and occupational employment data at national, state, metropolitan area, and county levels to support federal, state, and local policymakers, researchers, and economic analysts in workforce planning and economic policy development.

As the designated State Workforce Agency, the Education and Labor Cabinet will serve as the primary performer responsible for collecting, analyzing, and disseminating labor market statistical data throughout Kentucky. The cooperative agreement represents the federal government's annual investment in state-level labor market information systems and supports the Kentucky agency's ongoing operations to populate workforce information databases, maintain statistical databases, and deliver timely economic analysis reports essential for informed decision-making by job seekers, employers, educational institutions, and workforce development stakeholders.