Key Points:
- Unemployment rates rose in three states, fell in three, and remained stable in 44 states and the District of Columbia in February.
- The U.S. unemployment rate rose 0.2% to 3.9% in February.
- In total, 22 states had unemployment rates lower than the U.S. figure of 3.9%, 6 states and the District of Columbia had higher rates, and 22 states had rates that were not appreciably different from that of the nation.
- Twenty-eight states had jobless rate increases from a year earlier, three states had decreases, and 19 states and the District had little change.
- North Dakota had the lowest jobless rate in January at 2.0%, followed by South Dakota at 2.1%.
- California unseated Nevada for the highest unemployment rate again at 5.4% and 5.4% respectively.
- In February, three states had over-the-month unemployment rate increases: Rhode Island (+0.3%) and Connecticut and Washington (+0.1%).