September Unemployment Rate Declines Most in Maryland and New Hampshire

10:18 AM EDT, 10/20/2026 (MT Newswires) -- State-level data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Tuesday showed the unemployment rate fell in five states in September and held steady elsewhere. The largest unemployment rate decline was in Maryland and New Hampshire, where it fell by 0.2 percentage point each. South Dakota had the lowest rate at 2.0% while Washington DC had the highest at 5.6%. The national unemployment rate was reported at 4.2% in September, up from 4.1% in August. The largest payrolls gain in absolute terms was in New Jersey, which added 14,900 jobs, followed by South Carolina with 12,500 jobs.