Critical occupations and skill sets.Subject to appropriation, the Department shall conduct a study to identify current and projected shortages in critical occupations and specific skill sets within Illinois businesses and industries and shall devise strategies to alleviate any identified shortages. All State agencies shall cooperate with the Department in conducting the study. The study may build upon previous efforts by the Department, including studies conducted under its Critical Skills Shortage Initiative, which brought together private-sector employers and economic development entities as well as workforce, educational, and public-sector representatives to identify growth industries, industry skills shortages, and demand occupations, to determine root causes for the shortages, and to develop solutions to fill the skills gaps and worker shortages. The Department shall report the results of its study and its recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly no later than February 1, 2009.