WASHINGTON — February unemployment rates fell in the majority of states, and Virginia’s unemployment rate is now back below 4 percent.
The Labor Department’s Department of Labor Statistics says the unemployment rate in Virginia was 3.9 percent in February, the lowest since 2008. It’s down from both January and February unemployment rates last year that were at 4 percent.
Maryland’s February unemployment rate was 4.2 percent, unchanged from the previous month, but down from 4.5 percent a year ago.
In the District, the February unemployment rate was unchanged at 5.7 percent, and down from 6.2 percent in February 2016.
Only five states had unemployment rates in February that were under 3 percent.
New Hampshire had the lowest state unemployment rate in February, at 2.7 percent, followed by Hawaii and South Dakota at 2.8 percent and Colorado and Indiana at 2.9 percent.
New Mexico continued to have the highest state unemployment rate in the nation, at 6.8 percent in February.
