§ 23:76 — Forecasting

Louisiana § 23:76

• Jurisdiction: Louisiana
• Title 23: Labor and Workers' Compensation

Text

§76. Forecasting
A. For the forecasting information component of the system, there shall be
information on projected workforce growth, job growth, and demand. The workforce, job
growth, and demand information shall also reflect occupational information related to those
targeted cluster industries identified by Louisiana Economic Development.
B.(1) The information provided on the projected workforce growth shall include the
number of individuals employed and information on the individuals able and available for
employment at present and projected at a future date certain, both statewide and by
geographic regions.
(2) Occupational information shall include occupations within, training and
education levels required, and salary information.
C.(1) For the purpose of projecting job growth and demand, the Occupational
Forecasting Conference is hereby established as a committee of the council. The conference
shall develop official information regarding the statewide and regional workforce
development needs of current, new, and emerging industries as the council determines is
necessary for both state and regional workforce development system planning processes and
state planning and budgeting. The information, using quantitative and qualitative research
methods, shall include at least short-term and long-term forecasts of employment demand
for jobs by occupation and industry; current entry and average wages for those occupations;
and estimates of the supply of trained and qualified individuals available for employment in
those occupations, with special focus upon those occupations and industries which require
high skills and have higher than average entry wages and high median and experienced
wages. In the development of workforce estimates, the conference shall use, to the fullest
extent possible, local occupational and workforce forecasts and estimates.
(2) The conference shall review data concerning the local and regional demands for
short-term and long-term employment primarily in high-skills or high-wage jobs, as well as
other jobs. The conference shall consider such data in developing its forecasts for statewide
employment demand, including reviewing the local and regional data for common trends and
conditions among localities or regions which may warrant inclusion of a particular
occupation on the statewide occupational forecasting list developed by the conference.
Based upon its review of such survey data, the conference shall also make recommendations
semiannually to the Workforce Investment Council on additions or deletions to lists of
locally targeted occupations.
(3) The conference shall meet no less than two times in a calendar year. Other
meetings may be scheduled as needed.
(4) The principals of the conference shall be as follows:
(a) The governor or his designee.
(b) The secretary of Louisiana Works or his designee.
(c) One person appointed by the governor from a list of three nominees submitted
by the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry.
(d) One member appointed by the governor from a list of three nominees submitted
by the Louisiana AFL-CIO.
(e) One member appointed by the governor from a list of three nominees submitted
by the council, such nominees shall be three of the nonpublic council members serving on
the council.
(f) Two members, each of whom shall be a faculty member of a public or private
university or college in Louisiana, who shall be econometricians and have occupational
forecasting expertise or expertise in economic planning and industry/occupation matrix
formulation, to be selected by the other five principals of the conference from a list of not
less than three nor more than five nominees submitted by the Louisiana Board of Regents.
(g) The secretary of Louisiana Economic Development or his designee.
(h) The president of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System or his
designee.
(i) One member of the Louisiana Minority Supplier Development Council.
(5) The chairman of the conference shall be the principal appointed by the governor
from the council.
(6) The conference shall review and evaluate labor market data and information
before such forecasts are finalized and adopted. It may utilize whatever staff, information,
and technical expertise which it may determine is required to derive or revise the official job
growth and demand forecast. The conference shall consider relevant national trends in policy
and funding as well as state economic strategic plans and goals. Approval of the official
forecast of job growth and demand shall be by an affirmative vote of five principals and the
council.
(7) Once the job growth and demand forecasts are derived and approved by the
conference, the council shall determine the strategies necessary to fill such needs.
(8)(a) A final report of the top future growth and demand jobs, statewide and by
region, and the skills necessary to fill such jobs shall be made available for access on the
internet and noted in the Louisiana Register as available on the internet. The conference,
in coordination with the council, should determine a strategy for promoting and
disseminating the final report to the appropriate stakeholder groups as determined by the
council.
(b)(i) A list of the top twenty high-demand jobs with the highest typical annual wage,
statewide and by region, and the skills necessary to fill such jobs shall be made available for
access on the internet.
(ii) For each job listed, the following information shall be provided:
(aa) Occupational title.
(bb) Number of current job openings.
(cc) A short-term and long-term forecast of the number of job openings.
(dd) Entry-level salary.
(ee) Typical salary.
(ff) Educational requirements.
(gg) Estimated costs of the certificate or degree program.
(hh) Information provided to Louisiana Works from each of the state's public
postsecondary education boards on the educational and training programs offered through
their member institutions relative to the listed jobs.
(9) The chairman shall preside over conference sessions, convene conference
sessions, request information, specify topics to be included on the conference agenda, and
agree or withhold agreement on whether information is to be official information of the
conference. The chairman may designate another principal to preside over a conference
session, and in such instances, the designated principal shall have the same authority as that
of the chairman. The conference may release official information of the conference, interpret
official information of the conference, and monitor errors in official information of the
conference.
(10) The chairman who is responsible for presiding over a session of a conference
is responsible for preparing and distributing the necessary work papers prior to that session
of the conference. Any principal may cancel a meeting of the conference if such work papers
have not been distributed prior to the meeting. The work papers shall include comparisons
between alternative information where such comparisons are warranted.
(11) A principal may invite participation in the conference. Before or during any
session of the conference, a participant shall develop alternative forecasts, collect and supply
data, perform analyses, or provide other information needed by the conference if asked to do
so by the principal. The conference shall consider information provided by participants in
developing its official information. However, the council shall accept and take into account
information regarding the eight regional labor market areas from local workforce
development boards only when offered and presented to the council jointly, as regional input,
by all of the local boards within the region. Input from local boards that is not presented
jointly to the council will not be considered.
(12) The report of the conference shall be issued on or before July first of each year,
and shall constitute a five-year projection. Occupational projections will be based on the
most current state industry forecasts as approved by the Occupational Forecasting
Conference and the council, which shall be the official projections for the state of Louisiana.
Conference reports shall be submitted to the council for consideration and approval, and the
council may modify conference reports if it enunciates a reasonable basis for such
modifications. Reports not approved by the council shall not be final for the purposes of this
Section.
(13) The chairman of the conference shall have the responsibility and authority to
oversee and monitor the activities of the Occupational Forecasting Conference. The
conference shall be staffed by the staff of the council at the direction of the conference
chairman. The chairman of the conference and the staff shall upon the request of the
chairman of the council prepare quarterly updates of conference activities and progress for
review by the office of the governor.

Legislative History

Acts 1997, No. 1, §1, eff. April 30, 1997; Acts 1998, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 70, §1, eff. May 1, 1998; Acts 2001, No. 782, §1; Acts 2004, No. 283, §1; Acts 2008, No. 743, §2, eff. July 1, 2008; Acts 2010, No. 5, §1; Acts 2015, No. 426, §2; Acts 2020, No. 238, §2, eff. June 11, 2020; Acts 2025, No. 478, §7, eff. Oct. 1, 2025.