WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee (JEC) released the January 2012 edition of its state-by-state snapshots which detail each individual state’s economic progress for the previous month. 

Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), Chairman of the JEC said, “Over the past year, unemployment rates declined for over 90 percent of the states, including Pennsylvania. We also saw an encouraging number of private-sector jobs added nationwide in December.   This is movement in the right direction but it is not enough.  This report shows that less than half of the states reported private-sector gains last month.  We need to ensure that the recovery reaches workers across the country.”

Continued Casey, “This past week, I participated in the Payroll Tax Cut Conference Committee’s first meeting.  I am committed to extending the payroll tax cut for the rest of 2012 which would save the average American family $840. This will help increase spending, boost demand and strengthen the economy.  If the tax cut expires at the end of February, this would cause devastating effects for our economy. It is critical that we reach a resolution for our hard-working Americans.”

Other report highlights include:

• Twenty-one states and the District of Columbia added private-sector jobs in December.  Indiana had the largest private-sector gains (12,000) followed by Texas (10,100) and California (9,200).
• Thirty-seven states and the District of Columbia saw their unemployment rates decline in December, with eighteen states recording statistically significant decreases.  The national unemployment rate during the month was 8.5 percent, down from 9.4 percent a year earlier.
• Manufacturing employment expanded in 28 states in December.  The largest gains were in Michigan (4,200), followed by Indiana (3,600), and Wisconsin (3,300).  Overall, the United States added 225,000 manufacturing jobs in 2011. 
• Twenty-three states and the District of Columbia added jobs in the professional and business sector in December.  In 2011, more than 450,000 jobs were added in the professional and business services sector.
• Twenty-one states added jobs in the leisure and hospitality sector during December.  In all of 2011, 38 states and the District of Columbia added leisure and hospitality jobs.  During this period, 268,000 leisure and hospitality jobs were added.

The report entitled “Understanding the Economy: State-by-State Snapshots”, features key economic statistics for each state.  The report is the first edition of 2012 released by the Chairman of the JEC and uses recently released state-level data to explain how the economic recovery is unfolding in each state.

 

To see individual state snapshots, click here.