Labor Market Area

Most of the demographic and workforce data that follow include totals for the community's labor market area. The map below is provided for you reference.

Labor market counties are composed of counties which exist within a 60-minute drive range of the originating county’s county seat. A county will be included within the radius if the centroid point of a county (a point representing the center of the geographic area of a county) falls within the drive zone. Additionally, all contiguous counties will be classified as part of the labor market with the exception of non-Kentucky contiguous counties which have been excluded by the above mentioned 60-minute drive range and have a border with the Mississippi and/or Ohio Rivers.

Dated Material

This document contains material that is continuously updated on the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development's website. For the most current information for this community please visit:

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Contacts
Local John Will Stacy County Judge/Executive Morgan County Fiscal Court Morgan County Office Building 450 Prestonsburg Street West Liberty, KY 41472 Phone: 606-743-3898 FAX: 606-743-3895 WEB: www.morgancounty.ky.gov E-mail: mcfc.vql@gmail.com	State Amy Bowman Project Coordinator Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development Old Capitol Annex 300 West Broadway Frankfort, KY 40601 USA Phone: 502-564-7670 ext. 22001 Fax: 502-564-3256 Web: http:///www.thinkkentucky.com Email: Amy.Bowman@ky.gov

 

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Quick Facts

	Industrial Electric Cost Per KWH, 2017
Kentucky	$0.0558
U.S.	$0.0691

 

Statistical Summary
	Population 2017
Morgan County	13,188
Labor Market Area	109,798
Per Capita Personal Income 2016	$24,466
Median Household Income 2016	$32,517
Median Home Price 2017	$40,000
	Unemployment Rate 2018
Morgan County	6.3%
Labor Market Area	7.1%
U.S.	3.9%
	Average Weekly Wage 2017
Morgan County	$605
Labor Market Area	$612
U.S.	$1,042

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Location

 

		City	Miles		City	Miles		City	Miles
	1.	Atlanta, GA	409	11.	Dallas, TX	956	21.	Nashville, TN	298
	2.	Baltimore, MD	483	12.	Detroit, MI	359	22.	New Orleans, LA	794
	3.	Birmingham, AL	454	13.	Houston, TX	1,078	23.	New York, NY	656
	4.	Boston, MA	866	14.	Indianapolis, IN	270	24.	Norfolk, VA	521
	5.	Buffalo, NY	504	15.	Jacksonville, FL	691	25.	Oklahoma City, OK	914
	6.	Charlotte, NC	321	16.	Kansas City, MO	662	26.	Omaha, NE	852
	7.	Chicago, IL	450	17.	Lexington, KY	85	27.	Philadelphia, PA	580
	8.	Cincinnati, OH	146	18.	Louisville, KY	158	28.	Pittsburgh, PA	345
	9.	Cleveland, OH	317	19.	Memphis, TN	501	29.	St. Louis, MO	419
	10.	Columbus, OH	177	20.	Minneapolis, MN	858	30.	Wichita, KS	858

Population Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division, 2008 population estimate Personal Income Source: 2007 Regional Economic Accounts, Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), US Dept of Commerce Retail Sales Source: 2002 Economic Census, US Census Bureau Manufacturing Employment Source: 2007 County Business Patterns, US Census Bureau Highway Distance Source: ESRI Arcview StreetMap, 2007

 

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Sites

Available Industrial Sites

Click on a site point for details

							Min. Distance To
		Site ID	Site Name	Total Ac.	Largest Possible Tract	Rail	Interstate/Parkway	Airport
		205-001	John Will Stacy MMRC Regional Business Park	281.67	161	No	1.2	68

 

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Buildings

Available Industrial Buildings

Click on a building point for details

This community currently has no available buildings.

Note: A "+" symbol following the building name denotes a secondary building.

Special Purpose Buildings

 

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Demographics

 

Total Population

		2013	2014	2015	2016	2017
	Labor Market Area	111,212	110,949	111,101	110,429	109,798
	Morgan County	13,390	13,382	13,292	13,298	13,188
	West Liberty	3,297	3,322	3,328	3,375	3,336

Source: U.S.  Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Annual Estimates.

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Population by Selected Age Groups, 2017

		Morgan County		Labor Market Area
		Number	Percent	Number	Percent
	Under 16	2,167	16.4	20,233	18.4
	16-24	1,333	10.1	14,796	13.5
	25-44	3,797	28.8	26,664	24.3
	45-64	3,786	28.7	29,724	27.1
	65-84	1,887	14.3	16,667	15.2
	85 and older	218	1.7	1,714	1.6
	Median Age	41.2		39.9

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census.

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Population by Race and Hispanic Origin, 2017

		Morgan County		Labor Market Area
		Number	Percent	Number	Percent
	White	12,371	93.8	106,157	96.7
	Black or African American	577	4.4	1,700	1.5
	Am. Indian & Alaska Native	39	0.3	261	0.2
	Asian	76	0.6	480	0.4
	Native Hawaiian & other Pacific Islander	4	0.0	35	0.0
	Other/Multirace	121	0.9	1,165	1.1
	Hispanic Origin	141	1.1	1,291	1.2

Note: Hispanic is not a race category. A person can be white, black or African American, etc. and be of hispanic origin. Source: U.S.  Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census.

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Population Projections

		2020	2025	2030	2035
	Morgan County	12,824	12,324	11,762	11,155

Source:  Kentucky State Data Center, University of Louisville.

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Per Capita Personal Income 2015

		2011	2016	Pct. Change
	Morgan County	$22,309	$24,466	9.7 %
	Kentucky	$33,989	$38,926	14.5 %
	U.S.	$41,560	$49,246	18.5 %
	Labor Market Area Range	$19,426- $27,763	$21,737- $31,741

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis.

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Households

		2016		2016
		Number of Households	Persons Per Household	Median Household Income
	Morgan County	4,946	2.36	$32,517

Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census.

 

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Workforce

 

 

Civilian Labor Force

		Morgan County		Labor Market Area
		2018	Apr. 2019	2018	Apr. 2019
	Civilian Labor Force	4,476	4,411	36,199	35,953
	Employed	4,193	4,205	33,636	33,863
	Unemployed	283	206	2,563	2,090
	Unemployment Rate (%)	6.3	4.7	7.1	5.8

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Unemployment Rate (%)

	Year	Morgan County	Labor Market Area	Kentucky	U.S.
	2014	9.4	9.4	6.5	6.2
	2015	8.0	8.6	5.4	5.3
	2016	7.8	9.1	5.0	4.9
	2017	7.3	8.3	4.9	4.4
	2018	6.3	7.1	4.3	3.9

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Commuting Patterns

	Residents of Morgan County	2015	Percent
	Working and Residing In County	1,581	38.1
	Commuting Out of County	2,569	61.9
	Total Residents	4,150	100.0
	Employees in
	Working and Residing In County	1,581	58.5
	Commuting Into County	1,121	41.5
	Total Employees	2,702	100.0

	Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Journey-To-Work & Migration Statistics Branch.
	Note: Data for Kentucky and its border states only.

 

Average Weekly Wage, 2017

		Morgan County	Kentucky (Statewide)	U.S.
	Total All Industries	$605	$845	$1,042
	Total Private Industries	652	865	1,064
	Natural Resources and Mining	1,368	1,049	1,086
	Construction	1,075	1,011	1,155
	Manufacturing	607	1,108	1,272
	Trade, Transportation and Utilities	528	789	881
	Information	816	1,044	2,011
	Financial Activities	696	1,236	1,752
	Professional and Business Services	706	931	1,377
	Education and Health Services	847	906	940
	Leisure and Hospitality	253	327	441
	Other Services and Unclassified	457	626	734

Source: JobsEQ, Chmura Economics.

 

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Education & Training

 

Four-Year Colleges and Universities Within 60 Miles of West Liberty

Institutions engaged in furnishing academic courses and granting degrees at baccalaureate or graduate levels.

	Miles	Institution	Location	Enrollment (Fall 2018)
	21	Morehead State University	Morehead	10,580
	32	Morehead State University at Prestonsburg	Prestonsburg	N/A
	34	Kentucky Christian University	Grayson	688
	38	Morehead State University at Mt. Sterling	Mt. Sterling	N/A
	45	Alice Lloyd College	Pippa Passes	598
	51	Morehead State University at Ashland	Ashland	N/A
	51	University of Pikeville	Pikeville	2,336
	52	Frontier School of Midwifery and Family Nursing	Hyden	2,004
	53	Ohio University - Southern Campus	Ironton, OH	1,387
	57	Eastern Kentucky University	Richmond	16,612
	57	Marshall University	Huntington, WV	13,246
	59	Eastern Kentucky University, Manchester Campus	Manchester	N/A
			Total Enrollments	47,451

Note: Miles are calculated as straight-line distance, not highway miles. † Denotes enrollment for entire institution, including branch campuses; otherwise, enrollment is for specified campus. Source:  Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development.

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Two-Year Colleges Within 60 Miles of West Liberty

Institutions engaged in furnishing academic, or academic and technical, courses and granting associate degrees, certificates, or diplomas below the baccalaureate level.

	Miles	Institution	Location	Enrollment (Fall 2018)
	21	Maysville Community & Technical College, Rowan Campus	Morehead	N/A
	25	Hazard Community & Technical College, Lees College Campus	Jackson	N/A
	26	Big Sandy Community & Technical College, Mayo Campus	Paintsville	N/A
	32	Big Sandy Community & Technical College, Prestonsburg Campus	Prestonsburg	† 4,346
	38	Maysville Community & Tech College, Montgomery Campus	Mt. Sterling	N/A
	43	Hazard Community & Technical College, Knott County Branch	Hindman	N/A
	46	Hazard Community & Technical College, Main Campus	Hazard	† 3,305
	46	Hazard Community & Technical College, Technical Campus	Hazard	N/A
	51	American National University - Pikeville KY Campus	Pikeville	N/A
	51	Ashland Community & Technical College, College Drive Campus	Ashland	† 2,603
	51	Ashland Community & Technical College, Roberts Drive Campus	Ashland	N/A
	51	Ashland Community & Technical College, Technology Dr. Campus	Ashland	N/A
	51	Big Sandy Community & Technical College, Pikeville Campus	Pikeville	N/A
	51	Bluegrass Community & Technical College, Winchester - Clark Co. Campus	Winchester	N/A
	52	Hazard Community & Technical College - Leslie Co. Center	Hyden	N/A
	57	Huntington Junior College	Huntington, WV	368
	57	Maysville Community & Technical College, Main Campus	Maysville	† 3,495
	60	Southeast Community & Technical College, Whitesburg Campus	Whitesburg	N/A
			Total Enrollments	14,117

Note: Miles are calculated as straight-line distance, not highway miles. † Denotes enrollment for entire institution, including branch campuses; otherwise, enrollment is for specified campus. Source:  Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development.

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Kentucky Technical Schools Within 60 Miles of West Liberty

				Enrollment (2017-2018)
	Miles	Institution	Location	Sec	P/S	Total
	-	Morgan County ATC	West Liberty	669	N/A	669
	25	Breathitt County ATC	Jackson	411	N/A	411
	27	Carter County Career and Technical Center	Olive Hill	285	N/A	285
	33	Lee County ATC	Beattyville	395	N/A	395
	37	Floyd County ATC (GARTH)	Martin	264	N/A	264
	38	Montgomery County ATC	Mt. Sterling	507	N/A	507
	40	Martin County ATC	Inez	398	N/A	398
	43	Knott County ATC	Hindman	400	N/A	400
	47	Foster Meade Career and Technical Center	Vanceburg	936	N/A	936
	51	Boyd Co Career & Tech Educ Ctr Voc School	Ashland	710	N/A	710
	51	Greenup County ATC	Greenup	629	N/A	629
	51	Russell ATC	Russell	564	N/A	564
	51	Clark County ATC	Winchester	733	N/A	733
	52	Leslie County ATC	Hyden	388	N/A	388
	52	Jackson County ATC	McKee	455	N/A	455
	57	Mason County ATC	Maysville	181	N/A	181
	57	Madison County ATC	Richmond	825	N/A	825
	58	Millard ATC	Millard	195	N/A	195
	59	Belfry ATC	Belfry	546	N/A	546
	59	Clay County ATC	Manchester	348	N/A	348
	60	Letcher County ATC	Whitesburg	569	N/A	569
			Total Enrollments	10,408		10,408

Note: Miles are calculated as straight-line distance; not highway miles.  Kentucky Tech secondary schools, called Area Technology Centers (ATC), are operated by the Department of Education, Office of Career and Technical Education. Other secondary schools are operated locally by public school districts. Secondary student enrollment is listed under Sec, and post-secondary student enrollment is listed under P/S. Source:  KY Cabinet for Workforce Development; KY Dept. of Education.

 

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Business & Industry

 

Summary of Recent Locations and Expansions, 2018-Present

			Reported
		Companies	Jobs	Investment
	Manufacturing Location	0	0	$0
	Manufacturing Expansion	1	25	$20,000
	Service & Technology Location	0	0	$0
	Service & Technology Expansion	0	0	$0

Click here for detailed location and expansion information. Note: Totals include announced locations and expansions. Source: Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development (March 10, 2020).

Employment by Major Industry by Place of Work, 2017

		Morgan County		Labor Market Area
		Employment	Percent	Employment	Percent
	Total All Industries	3,502	100.0	29,957	100.0
	Total Private Industries	1,884	53.8	18,365	61.3
	Natural Resources and Mining	29	0.8	235	0.8
	Construction	185	5.3	808	2.7
	Manufacturing	412	11.8	1,743	5.8
	Trade, Transportation and Utilities	461	13.2	5,504	18.4
	Information	102	2.9	276	0.9
	Financial Activities	128	3.7	933	3.1
	Professional and Business Services	84	2.4	924	3.1
	Education and Health Services	260	7.4	4,774	15.9
	Leisure and Hospitality	126	3.6	2,663	8.9
	Other Services and Unclassified	98	2.8	503	1.7

Source: JobsEQ, Chmura Economics.

Top 20 by Employment

	Firm	Product(s)/Service(s)	Emp.	Year Established
	Crockett
	Rod & Staff Publishers Inc	School & religious book publishing, greeting cards	36	1959
	West Liberty
	Courier Publishing Co	Newspaper publishing,	6	1910
	Fannin Sawmill Inc.	Rough cut lumber	18	1970
	Lion Group Inc	Fire gear, chemical gear—liners for coats; pant liners; pant shells; suspenders	98	1984
	The Wells Group LLC	Ready-mixed concrete	45	1958

Source: Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development (March 10, 2020).

 

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Taxes

 

State Property Tax Rates Per $100 Valuation, 2016

	Selected Class of Property	State Rate	Local Taxation Permitted
	Real Estate	$0.1220	Yes
	Manufacturing Machinery	$0.1500	No
	Pollution Control Equipment	$0.1500	No
	Inventories:
	Raw Materials	$0.0500	No
	Goods in Process	$0.0500	No
	Finished Goods	$0.0500	Yes
	Goods-In-Transit	Exempt	Limited
	Motor Vehicles	$0.4500	Yes
	Other Tangible Personal Property	$0.4500	Yes

Source: Kentucky Department of Revenue.

Local Property Tax Rates Per $100 Valuation, 2017

	Taxing Jurisdiction	Property Taxes Per $100 Valuation
		Real Estate	Tangibles	Motor Vehicles
	County
	Morgan	$0.5113	$0.5615	$0.3654
	City
	West Liberty	$0.1880	$0.1901	$0.1600
	School District
	Morgan County Schools	$0.6150	$0.6150	$0.5330

Source: Kentucky Revenue Cabinet.

Local Occupational License Taxes, 2017

	Cities, counties and school districts may levy an occupational license tax on the net profits of businesses and/or on the salaries and wages of employees earned in the jurisdiction. Rates can vary between the two types of occupational license taxes. Occupational license taxes may be levied on businesses as either a flat rate schedule or as a percentage of apportioned net profits or gross receipts. Where both the city and county levy an occupational license tax, a credit may be given, at the option of the local governments, for the amount paid to the city against the occupational license tax of the county. (Consult local jurisdictions for further details.)
	Taxing Jurisdiction		Tax Rate on Salaries/Wages		Tax Rate on Net Profits/Receipts
	County
	Morgan		0.50%		No tax
	City
	West Liberty		0.50%		0.50% (on net profits; .05% on gross receipts)
	School District
	Morgan County Schools		No tax		No tax

Source: Occupational Taxes Spreadsheet - Kentucky Secretary of State, Local Tax Listing - Kentucky Personnel Cabinet

 

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Regulations & Permits

	Kentucky Public Protection Cabinet Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction Permitting Information: http://www.dhbc.ky.gov/
	Typical Building Permits	Responsible Division	# of plans	Time Frame (Days)
	Site Plan	Building Code Enforcement	1	7-30
	Building/Life Safety	Building Code Enforcement	1	7-30
	Plumbing	Plumbing	3	7
	Fire Protection	Fire Prevention	1	7-30
	Fire Alarm and Monitoring	Fire Prevention	1	7-30
	Fuel Tanks	Fire Prevention Hazardous Materials Section	1	7

 

Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection Permits, Fees, Regulatory Times, and Contacts Permitting Program Information: http://dca.ky.gov/DCA%20Resource%20Document%20Library/KyDEPCommonPermits2.17.14.pdf

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Utilities

 

Utilities Providing Service In Morgan County

Electric

	AEP - Kentucky Power Company - 606-929-1600
	East Kentucky Power Cooperative - 859-744-4812
	Big Sandy RECC - 606-789-4095
	Clark Energy Cooperative - 859-744-4251
	Licking Valley RECC - 606-743-3179

Natural Gas

	Columbia Gas of Kentucky Inc - 859-288-0227
	Elam Utility Company, Inc - 606-743-3695
	Public Gas Company Inc - 606-666-2205

Sewer

	Treatment Information (gallons per day)	Capacity	Avg. Flow	Excess
	West Liberty Wastewater Treatment Plant - 606-734-4129
	West Liberty STP	850,000	502,000	348,000

Treatment information provided by Division of Water, 502-564-3410

Water

	System Information (gallons per day)	Capacity	Avg. Use	Excess
	Morgan County Water District - 606-743-1204	N/A	N/A	N/A
	West Liberty Water Company - 606-743-4553	2,000,000	1,086,056	913,944

System information provided by Division of Water, 502-564-3410

 

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Quality of Life

 

	General Kentucky Quality of Life Information
	http://www.thinkkentucky.com/kyedc/qualityoflife.aspx

Median Home Price (2017): Morgan County - $40,000 for 23 homes

Source: KY Department of Revenue. Data based on sales for last six months of year indicated.

Climate

	Temperature
	Normal (30-year record)	55.6 degrees
	Average Annual, 2017	57.8 degrees
	Record Highest, July 2012 (57-year record)	104 degrees
	Record Lowest, January 1994 (57-year record)	-21 degrees
	Normal Heating Degree Days (30-year record)	4,512
	Normal Cooling Degree Days (30-year record)	1,135
	Precipitation
	Normal (30-year record)	42.59 inches
	Mean Annual Snowfall (30-year record)	23.6 inches
	Total Precipitation, 2017	42.59 inches
	Mean Number of Days Precipitation (0.01 inch or more) (30-year record)	139
	Mean Number of Days Thunderstorms (56-year record)	39.7
	Prevailing Winds	Southwest
	Relative Humidity (30-year record)
	1 a.m.	79 percent
	7 a.m.	83 percent
	1 p.m.	58 percent
	7 p.m.	61 percent

Note: Heating degree day totals are the sums of positive departures of average daily temperature from 65 degrees F.  Cooling degree day totals are the sum of negative departures of average daily temperature from 65 degrees F. Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, National Climatic Data Center, Local Climatological Data, 2017. Station of record: Tri-State Airport, Huntington, WV.

Public School District Enrollments, 2016-2017

		Total Enrollment	Pupil To Teacher Ratio
	Morgan County Schools	2,003	17.3

Source: Kentucky Department of Education, Office of Assessment and Accountability.