What They Are Reading in the States: State Unemployment Rates Plummet, Set Records

Across the country, local news outlets are highlighting how President Biden's Investing in America agenda is delivering for hardworking families.

This week the Biden-Harris Administration celebrated a cooling inflation rate as well as record low state unemployment, expanded high-speed internet access to millions of Americans, and worked to fulfill the President's State of the Union promise to end surprise junk fees.

See below for a sampling of what Americans are reading:

Bringing Down Costs for Hardworking Families

Idaho: KIFI (ABC Idaho Falls, ID): CPI report: US inflation is coming back down to Earth

The Consumer Price Index, a key inflation gauge that measures price changes for a basket of goods and services, increased 4% for the year ending in May…That represents a sharp pullback from April's 4.9% and is slightly below economists' expectations for a 4.1% gain, according to Refinitiv. On a monthly basis, prices ticked up 0.1%. Economists were expecting prices to increase by 0.2% from April to May…It's the 11th consecutive month that inflation has slowed, and it's a welcome reprieve from the painful shock of persistently high inflation endured during the past two years. This time last year, that CPI print was more than double at 8.6%

Illinois: WAND (NBC Decatur, Illinois): Inflation slowing down
[Alyssa Patrick, 6/14/23]

Americans are finally seeing some relief…inflation is starting to slow down. "The cost of gas is down more than $1.40. We know that the reforms [President Biden] passed to give Medicare the authority to negotiate prescription drug prices— those are beginning to lead to lower prescription drug prices across the country," Daniel Hornung, Special Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, told WAND News. "Health insurance premiums, through the Affordable Care Act, are available at a lower cost than they otherwise would have been. So area by area, we're making real progress," Honung explained. Reports show, these steps are working. The Consumer Price Index slowed last month, showing inflation fell to 4%. "American workers have been incredibly resilient. We now have a higher share of working-age Americans in the workforce than we've had at any point in the last 20 years. The unemployment rate hasn't been this low, for this long, in about 50 years," Hornung said.

Massachusetts: Boston Herald: Cooling down: Inflation slows
[Staff, 6/15/23]

Both the consumer price index and the core CPI — which excludes food and energy — decelerated on an annual basis, highlighting inflation's descent since peaking last year. At 4%, year-over-year inflation is now at its lowest level since March 2021, according to data out Tuesday from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Sinclair: Consumer inflation falls to lowest level in more than two years
[Ahtra Elnashar, 6/15/23]

Core inflation… ticked down slightly to 5.3% from April's reading of 5.5%. Heather Boushey, a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisers said their modelling of rent and owners' equivalent rent gives them reason to predict costs will decline later this year. And that'll have an effect on the core inflation. But right now it's been a little bit sticky, a lot of bit sticky actually, and has been a little bit higher than overall inflation," Boushey said, noting price trends for everyday goods like food and gas have given Americans some "breathing room."

Spectrum: U.S. consumer price growth slowed last month
[6/15/23]

Consumer prices in the United States cooled last month, rising just 0.1% from April to May and extending the past year's steady easing of inflation. At the same time, some measures of underlying price pressures remained high…Measured year over year, inflation slowed to just 4% in May — the lowest 12-month figure in over two years and well below April's 4.9% annual rise. The pullback was driven by tumbling gas prices and smaller increases in grocery prices and other items…In a statement, President Joe Biden called the report "good news for hard working families" who have been impacted by high prices, while hailing that inflation has slowed without an uptick in unemployment…"Annual inflation is now at the lowest level since March 2021, and less than half of what it was last June," the president said. "After gas and grocery prices increased rapidly last year due to the war in Ukraine, inflation has fallen for 11 months in a row."…"While there is more work to do, the plan that I laid out a year ago to bring down the cost of living and sustain stable and steady growth is working," Biden said, hailing his actions to lower gas and prescription drug prices and the debt limit bill he signed which he said "protects our historic economic progress and reduces the deficits by nearly $1 trillion over the next decade."

Connecting Americans Across the Country to High-Speed Internet:

Arkansas: KNWA (FOX Rogers, Arkansas): Benton County benefits from USDA grant, loans for high-speed rural internet service
[Alex Kienlen, 6/12/15]

The $57.1 million in funding is going to two telephone companies in Benton County, part of a national $714 million package the USDA announced on Monday through its ReConnect program. Ozark Telephone Company and Decatur Telephone Company are the two businesses receiving the funding. Decatur's funding is through a $30.4 million loan, while Ozark is funded through a $13.4 million grant and a $13.4 million loan. Ozark's funding will benefit customers in Arkansas and McDonald County, Missouri.

Kentucky: Kentucky Today: Federal funds to bring broadband to 2 eastern Kentucky counties
[Tom Latek, 6/15/23]

The IIJA will give Kentucky billions of dollars over five years to improve Kentucky's roads, bridges, railroads, riverports, airports, broadband, and more… "We are thrilled to receive this funding, which will enable us to provide high-speed, high-capacity broadband to our rural communities in Kentucky, where access to reliable internet has been a challenge for decades," said Keith Gabbard, CEO and General Manager of Peoples Rural Telephone Cooperative.

Montana: Flathead Beacon: USDA Awards $12 million to Bring High-Speed Internet to Lincoln and Flathead Counties
[Denali Sagner, 6/13/23]

Through the USDA ReConnect grant program, InterBel Telephone Cooperative in Eureka received $12,095,841 to deploy a fiber-to-the-premises high-speed internet network. The network is set to benefit more than 900 rural residents, 36 businesses and 11 farms in Lincoln and Flathead counties. InterBel will also participate in the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Lifeline and Affordable Connectivity Programs — initiatives that offer discounts to low-income consumers to increase internet affordability.

New Mexico: Source NM: USDA awards $43.3M to Oklahoma internet company that should benefit Union County in northeast NM

The broadband-to-come is meant to be affordable. Panhandle Telephone Co-op participates in federal programs that give low-income communities internet service discounts. People using Medicaid, SNAP or tribal assistance programs can qualify for $30 to $75 discounts per month on their bills…The internet will go to people, farms, educational facilities and businesses, according to the USDA.

Oklahoma: Public Radio Tulsa: USDA awards more than $50 million to Oklahoma for rural broadband expansion
[Xcaret Nuñez, 6/16/23]

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced it will award more than $50 million to Oklahoma to provide high-speed internet access for rural communities acrossBeaver, Cimarron and Pittsburg counties…Counties will receive the federal funds through the USDA's ReConnect program to help connect Oklahoma residents, farms, businesses and schools to high-speed internet…A part of the funding comes from the White House's broader $65 billion initiative for high-speed connectivity from last year's infrastructure law.

South Carolina: WCBD (NBC Charleston, SC): South Carolina to receive $6.2M for high-speed internet expansion in rural Berkeley County
[Sophie Brams, 6/13/23]

According to USDA, the Home Telecom Company will receive $6.2 million to connect nearly 4,000 people, 49 businesses, 46 farms, and two educational facilities to high-speed internet in Berkeley County.

Continuously and Consistently Lowering State Unemployment

Arizona: Big Media: Arizona unemployment rate drops to lowest level since 1976
[George W Hammond, 6/15/23]

For the Phoenix MSA, jobs were up by 151,700 from February 2020 to April 2023, accounting for the majority of the state increase. Government jobs in Phoenix remained significantly below their pre-pandemic level, while other services and natural resources and mining were close to full recovery. Most other sectors were well above February 2020 levels…Jobs in the Tucson MSA have risen by 3,800 from February 2020 to April 2023, with much more varied performance across industries than for the state or Phoenix. Private education and health services jobs were 2,800 jobs below February 2020 and professional and business services jobs were 2,200 below.

Connecticut: Greenwich Chronicle: Falling unemployment rates boost CT's economy
[Paul Schott, 6/16/23]

In 2022, the annual average statewide unemployment rate ran at 4.2 percent, down from 6.3 percent in 2021, according to a new report from the state Department of Labor. All 169 cities and towns in Connecticut saw their unemployment rates drop in 2022, after the jobless level fell in nearly every municipality in the state in 2021. Conversely, every city and town in the state saw unemployment rise in 2020, during the first year of the pandemic… As its unemployment rates have declined, Connecticut has made slow, but steady progress in recouping the jobs lost at the beginning of the pandemic. The Department of Labor reported Thursday that Connecticut added 5,000 jobs in May, based on preliminary data. The state has now recovered about 98 percent of the approximately 290,000 positions that it lost in March and April 2020.

Maryland: The Daily Record: MD jobs: State gained 2,500 jobs in May; unemployment dropped again
[Daily record Staff, 6/6/23]

Maryland gained 2,500 jobs in May and the state's unemployment rate decreased to 2.4%, according to data released Friday by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. The jobless rate marked the fourth consecutive month of record-setting low unemployment for Maryland. The public sector experienced the most growth with an increase of 1,500 jobs. Other sectors adding jobs include: mining, logging and construction (1,000); professional and business services (800); private education and health services (600); information (400); manufacturing (300); and other services (200).

New York: New York One: New York's unemployment rate falls below 4%
[Nick Reisman, 6/15/23]

New York's unemployment rate dipped below 4% for the first time since early 2020, the state Department of Labor on Thursday announced...The state's jobless picture has slowly improved in the three years since the initial onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, when unemployment reached historic levels…Labor officials on Thursday reported the state's unemployment rate dropped from 4% in April to 3.9% in May. The state added 31,000 private-sector jobs in May, bringing the total to 8.2 million.

North Carolina: Winston-Salem Journal: NC jobless rate remains at yearlong low of 3.4% in May
[Richard Craver, 6/16/23]

North Carolina's jobless rate remained at a yearlong low of 3.4% in May as the state experienced another month of churn among the 10 private-sector categories…The N.C. Commerce Department reported Friday another modest increase in the state's labor force, this time by 17,275 to 5.21 million…Taking a year-over-year look, the state's labor force is up 0.8%, or by 40,953. That represents a net gain of 42,690 listed as employed and 1,737 listed as unemployed.

Ohio: Cleveland.com: Ohio recovers all jobs lost during the pandemic in May, hits 3.6% unemployment
[Sean McDonnell, 6/16/23]

Ohio has now recovered all the jobs it lost during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it has hit record-low unemployment. Ohio added 6,600 jobs in May, bringing total employment to 5,514,600, according to data released Friday from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.

Ending Surprise Junk Fees

Georgia: Gwinnett Daily Post : These Event Ticket Platforms Are Finally Addressing "Junk Fees"
[Brian O'Connell, 6/15/23]

The President has been vocal about public-facing companies being transparent with their billing and fees before consumers pay up for their services. Now, ticket services companies are coming around with no-surprise "all-in" pricing as they meet with the President at the White House. "Today's voluntary actions demonstrate that companies both big and small recognize the importance of providing consumers with honest, up-front all-in pricing, rather than tricking them with surprise fees at the end of checkout," the White House said in a statement. "It is also just a first step towards addressing junk fees in the economy."

Missouri: KSHB (NBC Kansas City, MO): President Biden holds roundtable on junk fees
[Jamie Peters, 6/15/23]

President Biden will convene a meeting of private sector companies that the White House says has committed to ending surprise fees by fully disclosing fees to consumers upfront… The White House says this is just a first step. The President continues to call on Congress to pass legislation that mandates up-front all-in pricing for all ticket sellers, bans surprise "resort fees," eliminates early termination fees charged by cable, internet and cellphone companies, and bans family seating fees.

Oklahoma: Tulsa World: Biden hosts Live Nation, SeatGeek and Airbnb execs to showcase push to end hidden 'junk fees'
[6/15/23]

President Biden has been working to lower costs for hardworking families by bringing down inflation, capping insulin prices for seniors, and eliminating hidden junk fees," National Economic Council director Lael Brainard said in a statement. "More companies are heeding the President's call so that Americans know what they're paying for up front and can save money as a result."

Scripps: Companies pledge to Biden they'll eliminate 'junk fees'
[Justin Boggs, 6/15/23]

President Joe Biden is assembling leaders from several ticketing and travel companies who are pledging to end the practice of hidden or "junk" fees. The meeting comes about four months after President Biden called out the practice of adding hidden fees just before completing a transaction online.

Spectrum: Biden hosts Live Nation, SeatGeek and Airbnb execs to showcase push to end hidden 'junk fees'
[Staff, 6/15/23]

President Joe Biden hailed ending so called junk fees as a "win for consumers" Thursday as he met with at the White House with executives from Live Nation, Airbnb and other companies that have taken steps to embrace more transparent pricing. Biden prioritized the effort to combat surprise or undisclosed fees in his State of the Union address and has called for legislation, regulation and private sector action to end them. The president, at Thursday's event, highlighted actions by companies that have eliminated or plan to eliminate those surprise fees.

Washington: KUOW (NPR Seattle, WA): Live Nation and Ticketmaster are pledging to President Biden to show fees up front
[Ayana Archie, 6/15/23]

Biden pledged in his State of the Union speech in February to try to do more to eliminate hiding fees and surcharges. After the address, Live Nation Entertainment, formed from a merger between Live Nation and Ticketmaster, expressed interest in offering all-in, upfront pricing on its site and is now committing to do so starting in September, the White House said… Biden will be joined by the three companies at an event at 1:45 p.m. Eastern, the White House said. Executives from other companies who have already made the switch, including other ticket vendors and Airbnb, will also attend… "Today's voluntary actions demonstrate that companies both big and small recognize the importance of providing consumers with honest, up-front all-in pricing, rather than tricking them with surprise fees at the end of checkout," the White House said. "It is also just a first step towards addressing junk fees in the economy."