Local governments employed 14.7 million people in March 2025, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The 2025 annual averages from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) show how that workforce was distributed across states, establishments, and total annual wages.
Contents
- National workforce snapshot
- Full-time and part-time local employment
- Local government employment: Alabama through Illinois
- Local government employment: Indiana through Missouri
- Local government employment: Montana through Virginia
- Washington through Wyoming and Puerto Rico
- Establishments, employment, and wages nationally
National workforce snapshot
The Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll Summary Report: 2025 measured state and local government employment in March 2025. State and local governments employed 20.3 million people, an increase of 1.4% compared with March 2024. This is a March point-in-time measure, so it should be read separately from the BLS annual averages later in this article.
Local government accounted for 14.7 million employees, or 72.2% of the combined state-and-local workforce. State government employed 5.7 million people, representing 27.8% of that workforce. The shares and totals refer to March 2025 and come from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll Summary Report: 2025.
| March 2025 government workforce measure | Employees | Share or change |
|---|---|---|
| State and local government | 20.3 million | Up 1.4% from March 2024 |
| Local government | 14.7 million | 72.2% of state and local |
| State government | 5.7 million | 27.8% of state and local |
The national figures provide context for the state-level numbers. A state can have a large local workforce because of population, the number of public entities, the services delivered by local authorities, or a combination of these factors. Establishment counts also vary substantially, so employee totals alone do not describe the structure of local employment.
Full-time and part-time local employment
Across state and local governments, 15.8 million of the 20.3 million employees measured in March 2025 were full-time, while 4.5 million were part-time. Within local government specifically, full-time employment reached 11.7 million in March 2025, up 1.2% from March 2024. Local-government part-time employment reached 3.0 million, up 0.8% over the same period.
These figures describe different dimensions of the same public workforce. The full-time and part-time counts show the employment mix, while the year-over-year percentages show the change between March 2024 and March 2025. They are not annual averages and should not be directly substituted for the BLS 2025 annual-average estimates.
The Census Bureau source reports the following March 2025 measures:
- State and local governments had 15.8 million full-time employees and 4.5 million part-time employees.
- Local governments had 11.7 million full-time employees, up 1.2% from March 2024.
- Local governments had 3.0 million part-time employees, up 0.8% from March 2024.
Local government employment: Alabama through Illinois
The BLS Employment and Wages, Annual Averages 2025 reports annual-average local government employment, establishments, and total annual wages. The figures below cover Alabama through Illinois and use the 2025 annual average.
| State | Average employees | Establishments | Total annual wages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 229,093 | 3,806 | $13,049,356,349 |
| Alaska | 37,333 | 634 | $2,408,840,865 |
| Arizona | 277,467 | 1,744 | $18,541,492,631 |
| Arkansas | 110,550 | 2,050 | $5,450,215,310 |
| California | 1,890,924 | 19,356 | $167,627,748,490 |
| Colorado | 290,026 | 1,536 | $19,476,592,863 |
| Connecticut | 141,066 | 2,172 | $10,504,552,042 |
| Delaware | 31,581 | 301 | $2,110,736,931 |
| Florida | 718,561 | 1,656 | $50,256,412,958 |
| Georgia | 431,469 | 3,953 | $25,231,612,384 |
| Hawaii | 19,259 | 277 | $1,855,539,683 |
| Idaho | 82,203 | 1,701 | $4,132,130,809 |
| Illinois | 613,868 | 6,319 | $40,704,489,945 |
California recorded 1,890,924 average local government employees and $167.6 billion in total annual wages across 19,356 establishments. Florida recorded 718,561 employees, 1,656 establishments, and $50.3 billion in wages. Illinois recorded 613,868 employees across 6,319 establishments and $40.7 billion in wages.
Among the smaller counts in this group, Hawaii averaged 19,259 employees across 277 establishments and reported $1.86 billion in wages. Delaware averaged 31,581 employees across 301 establishments and reported $2.11 billion. Alaska averaged 37,333 employees across 634 establishments and reported $2.41 billion. All state figures in this section are from the BLS 2025 annual averages.
Local government employment: Indiana through Missouri
The next group shows the same BLS measures for Indiana through Missouri. Indiana averaged 272,588 local government employees across 2,938 establishments and reported $14,561,746,303 in total annual wages. Iowa averaged 177,485 employees across 3,254 establishments and reported $9,596,918,637.
| State | Average employees | Establishments | Total annual wages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indiana | 272,588 | 2,938 | $14,561,746,303 |
| Iowa | 177,485 | 3,254 | $9,596,918,637 |
| Kansas | 179,077 | 2,731 | $8,716,076,312 |
| Kentucky | 173,642 | 1,968 | $9,239,064,670 |
| Louisiana | 197,628 | 3,391 | $10,370,072,213 |
| Maine | 62,066 | 2,168 | $3,393,454,018 |
| Maryland | 264,934 | 2,141 | $19,580,181,048 |
| Massachusetts | 285,866 | 4,369 | $23,206,732,082 |
| Michigan | 373,586 | 5,077 | $22,828,864,302 |
| Minnesota | 275,967 | 4,188 | $18,232,499,219 |
| Mississippi | 150,808 | 1,870 | $7,047,858,632 |
| Missouri | 273,402 | 6,554 | $15,124,095,239 |
Michigan averaged 373,586 local government employees, while Massachusetts averaged 285,866 and Minnesota 275,967. Maryland averaged 264,934 employees and $19.58 billion in total annual wages. Missouri had 6,554 establishments, the largest establishment count in this group, with 273,402 average employees and $15.12 billion in wages.
Maine averaged 62,066 employees across 2,168 establishments and reported $3.39 billion in wages. Mississippi averaged 150,808 employees across 1,870 establishments and reported $7.05 billion. The BLS source labels these as 2025 annual averages, not March counts or forecasts.
Local government employment: Montana through Virginia
The BLS state figures for Montana through Virginia show a wide range of local government scale. Montana averaged 48,078 employees across 1,019 establishments and paid $2,637,820,907 in total annual wages. Nebraska averaged 115,216 employees across 1,903 establishments and paid $6,615,112,279. Nevada averaged 115,892 employees across 465 establishments and paid $8,857,973,212.
| State | Average employees | Establishments | Total annual wages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montana | 48,078 | 1,019 | $2,637,820,907 |
| Nebraska | 115,216 | 1,903 | $6,615,112,279 |
| Nevada | 115,892 | 465 | $8,857,973,212 |
| New Hampshire | 55,202 | 800 | $3,388,483,153 |
| New Jersey | 398,757 | 3,504 | $30,717,915,369 |
| New Mexico | 104,398 | 2,050 | $6,195,218,331 |
| New York | 1,088,652 | 9,678 | $91,973,987,536 |
| North Carolina | 456,685 | 4,995 | $28,773,966,555 |
| North Dakota | 47,744 | 982 | $2,464,344,926 |
| Ohio | 521,285 | 11,295 | $32,417,864,078 |
| Oklahoma | 221,596 | 3,765 | $12,107,526,281 |
| Oregon | 217,871 | 3,700 | $17,223,641,168 |
| Pennsylvania | 447,845 | 8,914 | $30,218,299,787 |
| Rhode Island | 32,330 | 419 | $2,309,115,999 |
| South Carolina | 234,115 | 2,094 | $14,113,874,676 |
| South Dakota | 0 | 863 | $0 |
| Tennessee | 286,567 | 1,745 | $16,876,870,134 |
| Texas | 1,411,353 | 10,396 | $86,628,393,982 |
| Utah | 143,835 | 2,608 | $7,932,646,587 |
| Vermont | 30,420 | 770 | $1,741,515,426 |
| Virginia | 406,963 | 3,916 | $26,020,757,646 |
New York averaged 1,088,652 local government employees and $91.97 billion in annual wages. Texas averaged 1,411,353 employees and $86.63 billion. Ohio averaged 521,285 employees across 11,295 establishments, while Pennsylvania averaged 447,845 employees across 8,914 establishments.
The data also include two states with zero average employees and zero total annual wages: South Dakota, which had 863 establishments, and Wyoming, listed in the next section with 637 establishments. The reported zero values are retained as published and are not interpreted here. Nevada’s 465 establishments and $8.86 billion in wages, alongside 115,892 employees, illustrate why establishment counts should be read together with the other measures.
Washington through Wyoming and Puerto Rico
The remaining BLS figures include Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, and Puerto Rico. Washington averaged 379,286 local government employees across 2,421 establishments and paid $32,341,340,425 in total annual wages. West Virginia averaged 67,031 employees across 1,904 establishments and paid $3,310,757,344. Wisconsin averaged 271,008 employees across 5,673 establishments and paid $14,975,284,999.
| Geography | Average employees | Establishments | Total annual wages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Puerto Rico | 51,842 | 139 | $1,219,310,938 |
| Washington | 379,286 | 2,421 | $32,341,340,425 |
| West Virginia | 67,031 | 1,904 | $3,310,757,344 |
| Wisconsin | 271,008 | 5,673 | $14,975,284,999 |
| Wyoming | 0 | 637 | $0 |
Puerto Rico averaged 51,842 local government employees across 139 establishments and paid $1,219,310,938 in total annual wages. Vermont averaged 30,420 employees across 770 establishments and paid $1,741,515,426, while Rhode Island averaged 32,330 employees across 419 establishments and paid $2,309,115,999. These figures are geographic entries in the BLS annual-average data and are presented separately from the 50 states where useful for interpretation.
Establishments, employment, and wages nationally
The BLS 2025 QCEW Coverage reports that U.S. local government averaged 172,694 establishments in 2025. The same annual-average source reports 14,763,811 local government employees and $1,008,814,667,777 in total annual wages.
| U.S. local government measure | 2025 annual average |
|---|---|
| Establishments | 172,694 |
| Employees | 14,763,811 |
| Total annual wages | $1,008,814,667,777 |
The national BLS employment figure is close in scale to the Census Bureau’s 14.7 million local government employees measured in March 2025, but the measures use different time concepts: the Census figure is for March, while the BLS figure is a 2025 annual average. The BLS figures and coverage label are available in the 2025 QCEW Coverage chart data.
Taken together, the sources describe local government as a large national employer with 172,694 establishments and more than 14.7 million annual-average employees in 2025. State-level results show the scale of that workforce and its wage totals, while the Census March comparison adds a recent year-over-year view of local employment and its full-time and part-time components.