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The Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Amendments of 1998 (Perkins III) and the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) heralded a new era for the career and technical education (CTE) performance accountability partnership among the States, the United States (US) Department of Education, and the US Department of Labor. This new era is characterised by quality management principles promoted by the Baldrige National Quality Program and the International Organization for Standardization. This information paper examines the application of these performance excellence criteria to the Perkins III performance measurement process. The author begins by describing the Perkins III and WIA core indicators of performance and locating them in the historical context of 20th century federal accountability for vocational-technical education so that the current emphasis on compatibility among federal performance information systems can be understood. This is followed by a review of significant vocational education and workforce development legislation and assessments. The core of the paper examines the Perkins III and WIA accountability processes and an example of a state model for performance data collection is outlined. The author concludes with comments on the future of accountability in CTE and workforce development, and ways in which performance measurement practices may be different in the 21st century.