Companies across Kentucky invest in workforce initiatives

FRANKFORT, KY – On Feb 7th, Governor Andy Beshear highlighted Kentucky’s continued investment in workforce training initiatives as he announced nearly $830,000 in funding and credits to assist with the training of over 2,100 Kentucky workers.

Training funds and credits approved during this month’s Bluegrass State Skills Corp. (BSSC) meeting push the state’s support in fiscal year 2023 to over $4.6 million for 76 applicants throughout the state to train more than 14,800 workers.

“World-class companies are picking Kentucky because of our world-class workforce,” said Gov. Beshear. “With Feb 7th’s announcement, the state has provided assistance for well over 14,000 Kentuckians this fiscal year to get the workforce training they need. Our economy is on fire and we’re not slowing down.”

Approvals during this month’s BSSC meeting support workforce training in communities across the state, including more than 881 trainees at Kobe Aluminum Automotive Products in Bowling Green, 305 trainees at Kroger Limited Partnership doing business as Kenlake Foods in Murray, nearly 250 trainees at Mouser Cabinetry in Elizabethtown, over 150 trainees at Ingram Barge Co. in Paducah and almost 130 trainees at Summit Biosciences in Lexington.

With approvals, fiscal year to date BSSC programs have provided $13 million in funds and credits since July 2021. Those funds assisted with workforce training to support more than 50,000 trainees.

The BSSC’s Grant-in-Aid (GIA) and Skills Training Investment Credit (STIC) programs assist employers throughout the commonwealth. GIA provides cash reimbursements for occupational and skills upgrade training at Kentucky businesses, while STIC offers state income tax credits for companies to offset the costs for approved training programs. Applications for both programs are accepted and considered for approval by the BSSC Board of Directors.

BSSC incentives are available to a range of operations, including manufacturing, agribusiness, nonretail service or technology, headquarters operations, state-licensed hospital operations, coal severing and processing, alternative fuel, gasification, renewable energy production and carbon dioxide transmission pipelines.

For more information on BSSC or to apply for workforce training assistance, visit the BSSC webpage.

Kentucky’s investment in workforce training furthers recent economic momentum in the commonwealth, as the state builds back stronger from the effects of the pandemic.

Since the beginning of his administration, Gov. Beshear has announced the creation of more than 43,000 full-time jobs and 828 private-sector new-location and expansion projects totaling $24.5 billion in announced investments.

With the books closed on 2022, the Governor has now secured the best two-year period in state history for economic growth.

In 2021, the commonwealth shattered every economic development record in the books. Private-sector new-location and expansion announcements included a record $11.2 billion in total planned investment and commitments to create a record 18,000-plus full-time jobs across the coming years.

That momentum continued strongly into 2022 with 248 new-location and expansion announcements totaling 16,000 full-time jobs behind nearly $10.5 billion in new investment.

The robust job creation has been accompanied by rising wages across the commonwealth. The average incentivized hourly wage in 2022 was $26.78 before benefits, the second-highest mark since 2010 and an 11.5% increase over the previous year.

Gov. Beshear also announced the two largest economic development projects in state history. In September 2021, Gov. Beshear and leaders from Ford Motor Co. and SK Innovation celebrated a transformative $5.8 billion investment that will create 5,000 jobs in Hardin County. And in April 2022, the Governor was joined by leadership at Envision AESC to announce a $2 billion investment that will create 2,000 jobs in Warren County. These announcements solidify Kentucky as the EV battery production capital of the United States.

Kentucky’s success has been noted by both S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings, which have upgraded the state’s financial outlook to positive in recognition of the commonwealth’s surging economy. In addition, Site Selection magazine placed Kentucky at 6th in its annual Prosperity Cup rankings for 2022, which recognizes state-level economic success based on capital investments.

Gov. Beshear’s administration is projected to post the four highest years of budget surpluses in Kentucky history, and the state’s rainy day fund has a record balance of $2.7 billion.

Information on Kentucky’s economic development efforts and programs is available at CED.ky.gov. Fans of the Cabinet for Economic Development can also join the discussion at facebook.com/CEDkygov, on Twitter @CEDkygov, Instagram @CEDkygov and LinkedIn.

Read about other key updates, actions and information from Gov. Beshear and his administration at?governor.ky.gov,?kycovid19.ky.gov?and the Governor’s official social media accounts?Facebook,?Twitter?and?YouTube.