If we are to understand the diversity of non-metro America we need a geographic standard capturing variations in local economic and labor force activities.
The central objective of CZ's and LMA's was to develop such a geographic unit that better captures the economic and social diversity of non-metro areas.
These commuting zones were developed without regard to a minimum population threshold and are intended to be a spatial measure of the local labor market.
Where necessary, the commuting zones were aggregated into 394 labor market areas that met the Bureau of the Census criterion of a 100,000 population minimum.
This was done to acquire a special 1990 Census Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS-L) that identifies labor market areas in which individuals work.