§ 49l-2. — Employment statistics.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 29USC49l-2]
TITLE 29--LABOR
CHAPTER 4B--FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT SERVICE
Sec. 49l-2. Employment statistics
(a) System content
(1) In general
The Secretary, in accordance with the provisions of this
section, shall oversee the development, maintenance, and continuous
improvement of a nationwide employment statistics system of
employment statistics that includes--
(A) statistical data from cooperative statistical survey and
projection programs and data from administrative reporting
systems that, taken together, enumerate, estimate, and project
employment opportunities and conditions at national, State, and
local levels in a timely manner, including statistics on--
(i) employment and unemployment status of national,
State, and local populations, including self-employed, part-
time, and seasonal workers;
(ii) industrial distribution of occupations, as well as
current and projected employment opportunities, wages,
benefits (where data is available), and skill trends by
occupation and industry, with particular attention paid to
State and local conditions;
(iii) the incidence of, industrial and geographical
location of, and number of workers displaced by, permanent
layoffs and plant closings; and
(iv) employment and earnings information maintained in a
longitudinal manner to be used for research and program
evaluation;
(B) information on State and local employment opportunities,
and other appropriate statistical data related to labor market
dynamics, which--
(i) shall be current and comprehensive;
(ii) shall meet the needs identified through the
consultations described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of
subsection (e)(2) of this section; and
(iii) shall meet the needs for the information
identified in section 134(d); \1\
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\1\ See References in Text note below.
(C) technical standards (which the Secretary shall publish
annually) for data and information described in subparagraphs
(A) and (B) that, at a minimum, meet the criteria of chapter 35
of title 44;
(D) procedures to ensure compatibility and additivity of the
data and information described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) from
national, State, and local levels;
(E) procedures to support standardization and aggregation of
data from administrative reporting systems described in
subparagraph (A) of employment-related programs;
(F) analysis of data and information described in
subparagraphs (A) and (B) for uses such as--
(i) national, State, and local policymaking;
(ii) implementation of Federal policies (including
allocation formulas);
(iii) program planning and evaluation; and
(iv) researching labor market dynamics;
(G) wide dissemination of such data, information, and
analysis in a user-friendly manner and voluntary technical
standards for dissemination mechanisms; and
(H) programs of--
(i) training for effective data dissemination;
(ii) research and demonstration; and
(iii) programs and technical assistance.
(2) Information to be confidential
(A) In general
No officer or employee of the Federal Government or agent of
the Federal Government may--
(i) use any submission that is furnished for exclusively
statistical purposes under the provisions of this section
for any purpose other than the statistical purposes for
which the submission is furnished;
(ii) make any publication or media transmittal of the
data contained in the submission described in clause (i)
that permits information concerning individual subjects to
be reasonably inferred by either direct or indirect means;
or
(iii) permit anyone other than a sworn officer,
employee, or agent of any Federal department or agency, or a
contractor (including an employee of a contractor) of such
department or agency, to examine an individual submission
described in clause (i);
without the consent of the individual, agency, or other person
who is the subject of the submission or provides that
submission.
(B) Immunity from legal process
Any submission (including any data derived from the
submission) that is collected and retained by a Federal
department or agency, or an officer, employee, agent, or
contractor of such a department or agency, for exclusively
statistical purposes under this section shall be immune from the
legal process and shall not, without the consent of the
individual, agency, or other person who is the subject of the
submission or provides that submission, be admitted as evidence
or used for any purpose in any action, suit, or other judicial
or administrative proceeding.
(C) Rule of construction
Nothing in this section shall be construed to provide
immunity from the legal process for such submission (including
any data derived from the submission) if the submission is in
the possession of any person, agency, or entity other than the
Federal Government or an officer, employee, agent, or contractor
of the Federal Government, or if the submission is independently
collected, retained, or produced for purposes other than the
purposes of this chapter.
(b) System responsibilities
(1) In general
The employment statistics system described in subsection (a) of
this section shall be planned, administered, overseen, and evaluated
through a cooperative governance structure involving the Federal
Government and States.
(2) Duties
The Secretary, with respect to data collection, analysis, and
dissemination of labor employment statistics for the system, shall
carry out the following duties:
(A) Assign responsibilities within the Department of Labor
for elements of the employment statistics system described in
subsection (a) of this section to ensure that all statistical
and administrative data collected is consistent with appropriate
Bureau of Labor Statistics standards and definitions.
(B) Actively seek the cooperation of other Federal agencies
to establish and maintain mechanisms for ensuring
complementarity and nonduplication in the development and
operation of statistical and administrative data collection
activities.
(C) Eliminate gaps and duplication in statistical
undertakings, with the systemization of wage surveys as an early
priority.
(D) In collaboration with the Bureau of Labor Statistics and
States, develop and maintain the elements of the employment
statistics system described in subsection (a) of this section,
including the development of consistent procedures and
definitions for use by the States in collecting the data and
information described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection
(a)(1) of this section.
(E) Establish procedures for the system to ensure that--
(i) such data and information are timely;
(ii) paperwork and reporting for the system are reduced
to a minimum; and
(iii) States and localities are fully involved in the
development and continuous improvement of the system at all
levels, including ensuring the provision, to such States and
localities, of budget information necessary for carrying out
their responsibilities under subsection (e) of this section.
(c) Annual plan
The Secretary, working through the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and
in cooperation with the States, and with the assistance of other
appropriate Federal agencies, shall prepare an annual plan which shall
be the mechanism for achieving cooperative management of the nationwide
employment statistics system described in subsection (a) of this section
and the statewide employment statistics systems that comprise the
nationwide system. The plan shall--
(1) describe the steps the Secretary has taken in the preceding
year and will take in the following 5 years to carry out the duties
described in subsection (b)(2) of this section;
(2) include a report on the results of an annual consumer
satisfaction review concerning the performance of the system,
including the performance of the system in addressing the needs of
Congress, States, localities, employers, jobseekers, and other
consumers;
(3) evaluate the performance of the system and recommend needed
improvements, taking into consideration the results of the consumer
satisfaction review, with particular attention to the improvements
needed at the State and local levels;
(4) justify the budget request for annual appropriations by
describing priorities for the fiscal year succeeding the fiscal year
in which the plan is developed and priorities for the 5 subsequent
fiscal years for the system;
(5) describe current (as of the date of the submission of the
plan) spending and spending needs to carry out activities under this
section, including the costs to States and localities of meeting the
requirements of subsection (e)(2) of this section; and
(6) describe the involvement of States in the development of the
plan, through formal consultations conducted by the Secretary in
cooperation with representatives of the Governors of every State,
and with representatives of local workforce investment boards,
pursuant to a process established by the Secretary in cooperation
with the States.
(d) Coordination with the States
The Secretary, working through the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and
in cooperation with the States, shall--
(1) develop the annual plan described in subsection (c) of this
section and address other employment statistics issues by holding
formal consultations, at least once each quarter (beginning with the
calendar quarter in which the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 is
enacted) on the products and administration of the nationwide
employment statistics system; and
(2) hold the consultations with representatives from each of the
10 Federal regions of the Department of Labor, elected (pursuant to
a process established by the Secretary) by and from the State
employment statistics directors affiliated with the State agencies
that perform the duties described in subsection (e)(2) of this
section.
(e) State responsibilities
(1) Designation of State agency
In order to receive Federal financial assistance under this
section, the Governor of a State shall--
(A) designate a single State agency to be responsible for
the management of the portions of the employment statistics
system described in subsection (a) of this section that comprise
a statewide employment statistics system and for the State's
participation in the development of the annual plan; and
(B) establish a process for the oversight of such system.
(2) Duties
In order to receive Federal financial assistance under this
section, the State agency shall--
(A) consult with State and local employers, participants,
and local workforce investment boards about the labor market
relevance of the data to be collected and disseminated through
the statewide employment statistics system;
(B) consult with State educational agencies and local
educational agencies concerning the provision of employment
statistics in order to meet the needs of secondary school and
postsecondary school students who seek such information;
(C) collect and disseminate for the system, on behalf of the
State and localities in the State, the information and data
described in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection (a)(1) of
this section;
(D) maintain and continuously improve the statewide
employment statistics system in accordance with this section;
(E) perform contract and grant responsibilities for data
collection, analysis, and dissemination for such system;
(F) conduct such other data collection, analysis, and
dissemination activities as will ensure an effective statewide
employment statistics system;
(G) actively seek the participation of other State and local
agencies in data collection, analysis, and dissemination
activities in order to ensure complementarity, compatibility,
and usefulness of data;
(H) participate in the development of the annual plan
described in subsection (c) of this section; and
(I) utilize the quarterly records described in section
136(f)(2) of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 [29 U.S.C.
2871(f)(2)] to assist the State and other States in measuring
State progress on State performance measures.
(3) Rule of construction
Nothing in this section shall be construed as limiting the
ability of a State agency to conduct additional data collection,
analysis, and dissemination activities with State funds or with
Federal funds from sources other than this section.
(f) Nonduplication requirement
None of the functions and activities carried out pursuant to this
section shall duplicate the functions and activities carried out under
the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act (20
U.S.C. 2301 et seq.).
(g) Authorization of appropriations
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section
such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 1999 through
2004.
(h) ``Local area'' defined
In this section, the term ``local area'' means the smallest
geographical area for which data can be produced with statistical
reliability.
(June 6, 1933, ch. 49, Sec. 15, as added Pub. L. 105-220, title III,
Sec. 309(2), Aug. 7, 1998, 112 Stat. 1082; amended Pub. L. 105-277, div.
A, Sec. 101(f) [title VIII, Sec. 403(a)(1)], Oct. 21, 1998, 112 Stat.
2681-337, 2681-416; Pub. L. 105-332, Sec. 5(b)(1), Oct. 31, 1998, 112
Stat. 3127.)
References in Text
Section 134(d), referred to in subsec. (a)(1)(B)(iii), probably
means section 134(d) of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, Pub. L.
105-220, which is classified to section 2864(d) of this title. The
Wagner-Peyser Act, of which this section is a part, does not contain a
section 134.
The Workforce Investment Act of 1998, referred to in subsec. (d)(1),
is Pub. L. 105-220, Aug. 7, 1998, 112 Stat. 936, as amended. For
complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note
set out under section 9201 of Title 20, Education, and Tables.
The Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act,
referred to in subsec. (f), was Pub. L. 88-210, Dec. 18, 1963, 77 Stat.
403, as amended, which was classified generally to chapter 44 (Sec. 2301
et seq.) of Title 20, Education, prior to being amended generally and
renamed the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act of
1998 by Pub. L. 105-332, Sec. 1(b), Oct. 31, 1998, 112 Stat. 3076. For
complete classification of Pub. L. 88-210 to the Code, see Short Title
note set out under section 2301 of Title 20 and Tables.
Prior Provisions
A prior section 15 of act of June 6, 1933, was renumbered section
16, and is set out as a Short Title note under section 49 of this title.
Amendments
1998--Subsec. (a)(2)(A)(i). Pub. L. 105-332, Sec. 5(b)(1)(A),
substituted ``under the provisions of this section for any purpose other
than the statistical purposes for which'' for ``under the provisions of
this section for any purpose other than the statistical purposes for
which''.
Pub. L. 105-277, Sec. 101(f) [title VIII, Sec. 403(a)(1)(A)], struck
out ``of this section'' after ``statistical purposes''.
Subsec. (e)(2)(G). Pub. L. 105-277, Sec. 101(f) [title VIII,
Sec. 403(a)(1)(B)], and Pub. L. 105-332, Sec. 5(b)(1)(B), amended
subpar. (G) identically, substituting ``complementarity'' for
``complementary''.
Effective Date of 1998 Amendments
Pub. L. 105-332, Sec. 5(b)(2), Oct. 31, 1998, 112 Stat. 3127,
provided that: ``The amendments made by paragraph (1) [amending this
section] take effect July 2, 1999.''
Pub. L. 105-277, div. A, Sec. 101(f) [title VIII, Sec. 403(a)(2)],
Oct. 21, 1998, 112 Stat. 2681-337, 2681-416, provided that: ``The
amendments made by paragraph (1) [amending this section] take effect on
July 2, 1999.''
Effective Date
Section effective July 1, 1999, see section 311 of Pub. L. 105-220,
set out as an Effective Date of 1998 Amendment note under section 49a of
this title.
Section Referred to in Other Sections
This section is referred to in sections 751, 2821, 2832, 2864 of
this title; title 20 section 2328.
