New facilities will boost supply chain within the health care sector

FRANKFORT, Ky – On Oct 27th, Governor Andy Beshear announced UPS Supply Chain Solutions Inc. will grow its presence in the commonwealth with two new-location projects totaling $334 million in investments and creating 435 high-wage jobs in Jefferson and Bullitt counties.

“We often talk about companies trusting in and believing in the resources and opportunities provided here in the commonwealth,” Gov. Beshear said. “UPS is an example of one of the largest brands in the world doing exactly that. Just as important as the economic impact of these announcements is the quality of jobs being created for Kentuckians and their families. The foundation is being set for years of economic success to come, and we are only getting started. I want to thank UPS for once again investing in the commonwealth. I am thrilled to see their continued success.

The Louisville project includes a 1 million-square-foot facility, with the company investing over $155 million and creating 315 high-wage jobs for local residents. UPS also will construct a 1 million-square-foot facility in Bullitt County with a $178 million-plus investment, creating 120 quality jobs. The exact location of both projects is yet to be determined, and these investments have already been included in the company’s capital plans.

“With these two new facilities, we are excited to continue to grow in the Louisville area, and we appreciate the enthusiastic support from Gov. Beshear, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer and leaders in Jefferson and Bullitt counties,” said Nick D’Andrea, UPS vice president of public affairs. “The city and region are vital to serving our customers and this is just the latest investment in the metro area, which also includes a new aircraft hangar currently under construction on the north end of Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport.”

UPS is the largest employer in Metro Louisville, with more than 25,000 employees working in air, ground and supply chain operations. The company’s Worldport global air hub at Louisville Muhammad Ali International airport is the centerpiece of the company’s global air network, with nearly 400 flights arriving and departing each day. UPS also operates 21 Supply Chain Solutions warehouses in the region, totaling more than 8 million square feet of space dedicated to warehousing and distribution for customers. The company’s operations in Kentucky create a significant economic impact, including 62,000 direct and indirect jobs created and $2.5 billion in annual payroll.

UPS is a major reason Kentucky remains a national leader in distribution and logistics, an industry that has announced more than 7,000 full-time jobs for Kentucky residents during the Beshear administration behind roughly $2 billion in new investment. The project also supports Kentucky’s health care sector, which includes 200 technology, service and manufacturing locations across the commonwealth, employing over 37,000 Kentucky residents. The industry includes headquarters operations, pharmaceutical makers, medical equipment design and production, medical device manufacturers and health care product distributors.

Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer noted the unprecedented economic momentum of the Louisville region and economic impact this continued partnership with UPS will bring.

“Louisville is on track to have one of its best years for economic development in the last decade,” said Mayor Fischer. “Since the creation of Louisville Forward eight years ago, our strategy has centered around pursuing high-wage jobs in high-growth sectors, including laboratory and medical logistics, and as a result, we have seen the average annual wages for economic development projects grow 26%. Our decades-long partnership with UPS Healthcare, UPS Airlines and UPS Supply Chain Solutions continues to bring great opportunity to our community, and we are excited to welcome 315 new jobs and $155 million in investment to Louisville with this latest announcement.”

Bullitt County Judge/Executive Jerry Summers expressed his gratitude for the company’s continued support of the community.

“Bullitt County has a long and incredibly positive relationship with UPS,” Judge Summers said. “I am incredibly excited for the opportunities this expansion will bring to the community in terms of high-wage jobs and am thankful for UPS and their leadership for believing in Bullitt County and what we have to offer. This is a very exciting time for everyone involved and we look forward to many more years of partnership.”

Bob Fouts, executive director of Bullitt County Economic Development Authority, is looking forward to the positive economic impact this investment will have on the region.

“UPS is the driving force making Bullitt County and the Louisville-Jefferson County Region an international distribution hub,” said Fouts. “We are very excited about the large investment of $178.5 million dollars and the 120 high-paying jobs. It is a great addition to their growing presence in Bullitt County.”

Keith Griffee, chairman and community development director of the Bullitt County Economic Development Authority, is excited for the continued partnership between UPS and the community.

“UPS continues to be a great partner, not only for Bullitt County, but for the entire region,” said Griffee. “This project shows the importance of Bullitt County to this region as a gateway to the entire country.”

UPS’ investment and planned job creation furthers recent economic momentum in the commonwealth, as the state builds back stronger from the effects of the pandemic.

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. Kentucky’s average incentivized hourly wage for projects statewide in 2021 was $24 before benefits, a 9.4% increase over the previous year.

The economic momentum has carried strongly into 2022, with nearly $7.5 billion invested and more than 13,000 full-time jobs created just through September.

Since taking office, Gov. Beshear’s administration has welcomed $21 billion in investments that are creating 40,000 jobs, including 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 of this year, 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.

Kentucky has posted record low unemployment rates for the longest consecutive stretch on record, holding at or below 3.9% since April 2022.

In July, the Governor reported the highest annual growth rate in 31 years. And for the second year in a row, Kentucky’s General Fund budget surplus has exceeded $1 billion. Also in July, Gov. Beshear reported that the state’s rainy day fund is up to a record balance of $2.7 billion, significantly higher than the $129 million balance the fund had when the Governor took office.

Kentucky reported August 2022 General Fund receipts hit an unprecedented high for any August on record, marking 21 straight months of growing revenues for the state.

Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed Kentucky lead the entire nation in job growth for the month of August and tied with New Hampshire for the largest jump in employment growth for September.

In September, Kentucky reported August 2022 General Fund receipts hit an unprecedented high for any August on record, marking 21 straight months of growing revenues for the state. September was also the third highest revenue month on record with more than $1.4 billion reported, marking the seventh month this year with collections topping $1 billion.

And from September 2021 to September 2022, Kentucky added 81,700 new jobs. Except for a four-month recovery period after the initial COVID-19 shock, this is the largest number of new jobs added in 20 years.

To encourage investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) on Oct 27th, preliminarily approved two 10-year incentive agreements with the company under the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based agreements can provide up to $13 million in tax incentives across both projects based on the company’s combined investment of $334 million and annual targets of:

• Creation and maintenance of 435 Kentucky-resident, full-time jobs across both projects over 10 years; and
• Respectively paying an average hourly wage of $45.59 and $43.28 including benefits across those jobs.

By meeting its annual targets over the agreement term, the company can be eligible to keep a portion of the new tax revenue it generates. The company may claim eligible incentives against its income tax liability and/or wage assessments.

In addition, UPS can receive resources from Kentucky’s workforce service providers. Those include no-cost recruitment and job placement services, reduced-cost customized training and job-training incentives.

For more information on UPS, visit about.ups.com.

A detailed community profile for Jefferson County can be viewed here and a detailed community profile for Bullitt County can be viewed here.

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.