Employment Health
Uses labor market signals such as unemployment direction, labor force participation, and employment consistency.
Combined Score Framework
- Signals are collected from public datasets and assigned to one of four core signal categories.
- Signal values are normalized so locations can be compared on a consistent scale.
- Normalized signals are combined into category scores and then rolled into a single Combined Score (0-100).
- Trend direction is assigned from multi-year movement to reduce one-year volatility effects.
Four Core Signal Categories
Income Stability
Uses income durability signals such as median household income movement, wage consistency, and poverty direction.
Industry Diversification
Uses concentration-risk signals such as sector mix diversity and dependence on cyclical industries.
Population Stability
Uses demographic continuity signals such as net migration and population change direction over time.
Comparisons And Percentiles
- National comparisons are level-matched: states vs states, counties vs counties, cities vs cities.
- State comparison appears for county and city pages and benchmarks each location against in-state peers.
- Gap-to-median values show distance from the midpoint of the same-level distribution.
Interpretation Notes
- Scores are analytical indicators of relative stability, not guarantees of future economic outcomes.
- Release timing differs by source; the latest complete year may vary by metric.
- Methodology versioning is used so updates remain reproducible and comparable over time.