ADMINISTRATIVE USES OF LOCAL AREA UNEMPLOYMENT STATISTICS

User Agency / Program Geographic Areas Used Reference Period Allocation Formulas / Qualifying Criteria

Department of Labor – Employment and Training Administration

Youth Workforce Investment 

Activities (WIOA, Title I, 

Subtitle B, Chapter 2) 

States and Areas of Substantial Unemployment 

(ASUs). An ASU is a contiguous geographic area 

within a state with an unemployment rate of at 

least 6.5 percent a population of at least 10,000. 

Most recent program year (JulyJune). Funding based on the following proportions: 1/3 on relative number of unemployed in 

ASUs, 1/3 on relative number of excess unemployed (i.e., number of unemployed in excess 

of 4.5 percent of labor force), and 1/3 on relative number of economically disadvantaged 

youth, age 16-21. 

Adult Employment and 

Training Activities (WIOA, 

Title I, Subtitle B, Chapter 3) 

States and ASUs. Most recent program year (JulyJune). Funding based on the following proportions: 1/3 on relative number of unemployed in 

ASUs, 1/3 on relative number of excess unemployed (i.e., number of unemployed in excess 

of 4.5 percent of labor force), and 1/3 on relative number of economically disadvantaged 

adults, age 22-72. 

Dislocated Worker 

Employment and Training 

Activities (WIOA, Title I, 

Subtitle B, Chapter 3) 

States. Most recent program year (JulyJune) for unemployed and 

excess unemployed; most recent 

calendar year for unemployed 15 

weeks or more.

Funding based on the following proportions: 1/3 on relative number of unemployed, 1/3 on 

relative number of excess unemployed, and 1/3 on relative number of individuals 

unemployed for 15 weeks or more. 

Employment Service Grants 

to States (Wagner-Peyser 

Act, Section 5)

States. Most recent calendar year. State funding algorithm is based on the following proportions: 2/3 of relative number of 

civilian labor force and 1/3 on relative number of unemployed. 

Labor Surplus Areas (LSAs) Counties, cities over 25,000 population, and 

county balances. 

Most recent 2-calendar-year 

average. 

An area qualifies as a LSA when its average unemployment rate is 20 percent or more above 

the national average rate (including Puerto Rico) for the period, with the threshold being no 

lower than 6 percent and no higher than 10 percent.

Federal-State Extended 

Unemployment Benefits 

(EB) 

States. Most recent 3 months for total 

unemployment trigger (TUR) or 

most recent 13 weeks for insured 

unemployment trigger (IUR).

State is eligible to pay EB if: (1) the seasonally-adjusted total unemployment rate (TUR) for 

the most recent 3-month period is at least 6.5 percent and at least 10 percent above the state 

TUR for the same 3-month period in either of the 2 preceding years, or (2) the insured 

unemployment rate (IUR) is at least 5 percent and at least 120 percent of the average IUR 

for the same 13-week period in either of the 2 preceding years.

YouthBuild Program Census tracts and non-metropolitan counties. Not specified. An area can qualify if it is an underserved area, which is defined as an area comprised of 

census tracts with the following distress criteria: (1) the unemployment rate remains at least 

50 percent above the national unemployment rate and (2) a high rate of poverty persists.

Senior Community Service 

Employment Program (or 

Community Service 

Employment for Older 

Americans) 

Counties and cities. Annual averages for the most 

recent 3 years. 

Participants must be unemployed, 55 years of age or older, and have incomes no more than 

125 percent of the Federal poverty level. They qualify as most in need if they reside in an 

area with persistent unemployment. (Persistent unemployment means that the annual 

average unemployment rate for a county or city is more than 20 percent higher than the 

national average for 2 out of the last 3 years). Unemployed means an individual who is 

without a job and who wants and is available for work, including an individual who may 

have occasional employment that does not result in a consistent source of income.

National Apprenticeship Act States. Most recent ASU program year 

(July-June) for the total 

unemployed and civilian labor 

force data.

One-third of the funding is distributed as a minimum allotment to all eligible states and 

territories, while two-thirds of the funding is distributed formulaically using relative shares, 

with: (1) 50 percent based on state shares of total registered apprentices and (2) 50 percent 

based on state shares of total job openings, total unemployed, and total civilian labor force.

Department of Labor – Veterans’ Employment and Training Service

Jobs for Veterans Act of 

2002

States. Most recent 3-calendar year 

average.

Funding is based on an estimate of the number of veterans seeking employment in a state as 

a portion of the number of veterans seeking employment nationwide.

Department of Agriculture

The Emergency Food 

Assistance Program 

(TEFAP)

States. Ten-month average of most 

recent October-July period. 

Farm commodities and funds are allocated based on the following proportions: 3/5 on 

relative number of persons in households below the poverty line and 2/5 on relative number 

of unemployed persons. 

Waivers to Supplemental 

Nutrition Assistance 

Program (SNAP) Time 

Limits for Able-Bodied 

Adults Without Dependents 

(ABAWD) 

States, metropolitan areas, counties, cities, Indian 

reservations, and specially-designated areas (e.g., 

census tracts). 

Generally 12-month periods, but 

no less than 3 months for 

unemployment rate. Not 

specified for insufficient jobs 

criterion. 

Waivers are granted to areas with: (1) an unemployment rate over 10 percent for the latest 

12-month (or 3-month) period; (2) a historical seasonal unemployment rate over 10 percent 

(3); a Labor Surplus Area designation from DOL; (4) a 24-month average unemployment 

rate 20 percent above national average; (5) a low and declining employment-population 

ratio; (6) a lack of jobs in declining occupations or industries; (7) described in an academic 

study or publication as an area with a lack of jobs; or (8) qualifies for extended 

unemployment benefits.
 

ADMINISTRATIVE USES OF LOCAL AREA UNEMPLOYMENT STATISTICS

User Agency / Program Geographic Areas Used Reference Period Allocation Formulas / Qualifying Criteria

Department of Commerce – Economic Development Administration

Public Works and Economic 

Development Program 

Areas defined by geographic/political boundaries, 

e.g., States, counties, cities, Indian reservations. 

Most recent 24-month average. An area qualifies if: (1) the unemployment rate is at least one percentage point above the 

national rate, (2) the per capita income is 80 percent or less of the national average per 

capita income, or (3) there is a special need, as determined by EDA, arising from actual or 

threatened severe unemployment or economic adjustment problems resulting from severe 

short-term or long-term changes in economic conditions.

Economic Adjustment 

Assistance Program

Same geographic areas used in the Public Works 

and Economic Development Program.

Most recent 24-month average. Same qualifying criteria used in the Public Works and Economic Development Program. 

Department of Defense – Defense Logistics Agency

Procurement Technical 

Assistance (PTA) 

States, counties, and cities. Most recent 24-month average. An area qualifies for additional assistance if: (1) the unemployment rate is at least one 

percentage point above the national average for the most recent 24-month period or (2) the 

per capita income is 80 percent or less of the state average.

Department of Health and Human Services – Administration for Children and Families

Temporary Assistance to 

Needy Families (TANF) 

Contingency Fund 

States. Most recent 3-month average. States and the District of Columbia can access funds if they are determined to be “needy,” 

based on a seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate that is at least 6.5 percent for the 3-

month period and at least 110 percent of the rate for the corresponding period in either/both 

of the 2 preceding calendar years; or if the number of food stamp recipients increases at 

least 10 percent during the 3-month period. (TANF automatically gives block grants to 

Puerto Rico.)

TANF — Job Search and Job 

Readiness Activities 

States. Most recent 3-month average. The time limit on participation in job search and job readiness activities is extended to 12 

weeks if the state unemployment rate is at least 50 percent above the national rate or if a 

state meets either of the qualifying criteria for Contingency Fund drawdowns. (TANF 

automatically gives block grants to Puerto Rico.)

Department of Health and Human Services – Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Community Mental Health 

Services Block Grants 

(MHBG) 

States and territories. Most recent state fiscal year. Maintenance of Effort requirements for grant recipients are waived if they can demonstrate 

extraordinary economic conditions. To qualify, a recipient must show a decline in total tax 

revenue of at least 1.5 percent from the previous fiscal year, accompanied by an increase in 

the unemployment rate of at least 1.0 percentage point or a decrease in employment of at 

least 1.5 percent.

Prevention and Treatment of 

Substance Abuse Block 

Grants (SABG) 

States and territories. Most recent state fiscal year. Maintenance of Effort requirements for grant recipients are waived if they can demonstrate 

extraordinary economic conditions. To qualify, a recipient must show a decline in total tax 

revenue of at least 1.5 percent from the previous fiscal year, accompanied by an increase in 

the unemployment rate of at least 1.0 percentage point OR a decrease in employment of at 

least 1.5 percent.

Department of Homeland Security – Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

Emergency Food and Shelter 

Program (EFSP) 

Counties and cities. Most recent 12-month average. Jurisdictions qualify for FEMA funding if they meet one of the following criteria: (1) 

13,000 or more unemployed with a jobless rate of 4.3 percent or more, (2) 300-12,999 

unemployed with a jobless rate of at least 6.3 percent, or (3) 300 or more unemployed with 

a poverty rate of at least 11 percent.

National Pre-Disaster 

Mitigation Program 

Counties, cities, and Indian reservations. Most recent annual average. Federal cost-share may be increased from 75% to 90% for grants to small, impoverished 

communities. To qualify, a community must be a rural area of 3,000 people or fewer, have 

an average per capita income of less than 80 percent of the national average, and have a 

local unemployment rate 1.0 percentage point or more above the national rate.

Department of Homeland Security – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

Employment Creation Visa 

(EB-5) Program

Metropolitan areas, counties, cities, and census 

tracts.

Time of investment or petition 

for alien investor status.

Visas are granted for reduced investment amounts if made in a rural area or an area with an 

unemployment rate at least 150 percent that of the national average rate.
NOTE: The term “cities” also includes county subdivisions in selected states for various programs. Treatment of the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico varies by program. Treatment of other territories that are not included 

in the Local Area Unemployment Statistics program also varies. 

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics program, April 17, 2024. 

ADMINISTRATIVE USES OF LOCAL AREA UNEMPLOYMENT STATISTICS

User Agency / Program Geographic Areas Used Reference Period Allocation Formulas / Qualifying Criteria

Department of the Treasury

Riegle Community 

Development and Regulatory 

Improvement Act of 1994—

Bank Enterprise Awards 

Metropolitan areas, counties, cities, and possible 

sub-areas (e.g., census tracts). 

Most recent 12-month period 

before announcement of 

application period. 

An institution may qualify if part or all of its service area: (1) is located within one unit of 

general local government, (2) has a contiguous boundary, (3) (a) has a population of 4,000 

or more, if in a metropolitan area, or (b) has a population of 1,000 or more, if outside of a 

metropolitan area, or (c) is entirely within an Indian reservation, (4) has a poverty rate of at 

least 30 percent, and (5) has an unemployment rate at least 1.5 times the national rate.

North American 

Development Bank 

(NADBank) Community 

Adjustment and Investment 

Program (CAIP) 

Communities (discrete geographical areas) i.e., 

counties, towns, or cities. 

Most recent 12-month average. Eligibility for CAIP financing is based on: (1) significant job loss connected to the passage 

of NAFTA and (2) an unemployment rate that is at least 1.0 percentage point above the 

national rate over the same period. 

Energy Community Bonus 

Tax Credits under the 

Inflation Reduction Act of 

2022 (IRA) 

Metropolitan areas (delineated by OMB) and nonmetropolitan areas (from the BLS’s OEWS 

program). 

Most recent annual average. A metropolitan area or non-metropolitan area qualifies as an energy community if the 

following criteria are met: (1) it has (or, at any time during the period beginning after 

December 31, 2009, had) 0.17 percent or greater direct employment or 25 percent or 

greater local tax revenues related to the extraction, processing, transport, or storage of coal, 

oil, or natural gas and (2) it has an unemployment rate at or above the national average 

unemployment rate for the previous year.

Appalachian Regional Commission

Area Development Program 

Distressed Counties Grants 

The 420 counties defined within the Appalachian 

Region are considered. 

Most recent 3-year average. An area qualifies as distressed if it ranks in the worst 10 percent of the nation’s counties 

according to ARC’s index-based County Economic Status Classification System, which 

compares the national averages with each county’s: (1) 3-year average unemployment rate, 

(2) per capita market income, and (3) poverty rate. 

Small Business Administration

Historically Underutilized 

Business Zones (HUB 

Zones) 

Census tracts, non-metropolitan counties, and 

Indian reservations. 

Most recent annual average for 

unemployment rate. 

An area qualifies if it is: (1) a “qualified” census tract (as defined in the 1986 IRS code), 

(2) a non-metropolitan county with (a) a median household income less than 80% of the 

statewide non-metropolitan median or (b) an unemployment rate at least 140% of the 

statewide average or the national average, or (3) within the boundaries of an Indian 

reservation, or (4) a military base closed under the Defense Base Realignment and Closure 

Act of 1990.