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On May 24th, the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD) announced the preliminary April 2017 unemployment rates for Wisconsin’s 72 counties and the 32 cities with populations greater than 25,000 residents. St. Croix County’s rate was estimated at 2.7%. For comparison, St. Croix’s final rate in March was 3.7% and February’s final rate was 4.6%. One year ago, the county’s unemployment rate was estimated at 2.7%.

DWD said preliminary unemployment rates for April decreased in all 72 counties when compared to April 2016 as well as March 2017. The current rates ranged from 2.1% in Dane County to 7.4% in Iron.

The April 2017 preliminary unemployment rates decreased in all of Wisconsin’s 32 municipalities with population bases of least 25,000 residents when compared to April 2016 and over the month to March 2017. The April rates ranged from 2.1% in Madison to 3.8% in Racine.

Dane County had the lowest rate in April at 2.1%, followed by Lafayette (2.2%), Calumet (2.4%), Fond du Lac (also at 2.4%), and Green (also at 2.4%). Iron County had the highest rate in April at 7.4%, followed by Menominee (6.5%), Bayfield (5.8%), Forest (5.5%), and Vilas (5.4%).

St. Croix, Pierce, Polk, and Dunn counties comprise Wisconsin’s Greater St. Croix Valley. In addition to St. Croix referenced above, Dunn County’s preliminary rate for April was estimated at 2.9%. Pierce’s rate in April was estimated at 3.0% and Polk’s rate was 3.6%. The current rates in all four counties are lower compared to April 2016.

St. Croix and Pierce counties are included in the 16-county Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington MN-WI metro area. The April 2017 unemployment rate for the Twin Cities was estimated at 3.3%, which is lower than the final rate of 3.8% in March and February’s final rate of 4.2%. The unemployment rate in the Twin Cities was 3.3% in April 2016 as well as March 2017.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate for Wisconsin in April was estimated at 3.2%, which is lower than the final rate of 3.4% in March and February’s final rate of 3.7%. One year ago, the state’s seasonally adjusted rate was 4.1%.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate in Minnesota in April 2017 was estimated at 3.8%, which is the same as the final rate in March and lower than February’s final rate of 4.0%. Minnesota’s seasonally adjusted rate one year ago was 3.8%.

The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate in the U.S. for April was estimated at 4.4%, which is lower than the final rate of 4.5% in March and February’s final rate of 4.8%. One year ago the U.S. rate (seasonally adjusted) was estimated at 5.0%.

Wisconsin’s preliminary (seasonally adjusted) labor force participation rate for April 2017 was estimated at 68.6%, which is higher than the final of 68.4% in March and February’s final rate of 68.3%. One year ago, Wisconsin’s labor force participation rate was 68.8%. The preliminary (seasonally adjusted) labor force participation rate for the U.S. in April was estimated at 62.9% which is lower than the final rate of 63.0% in both March and February. One year ago, the labor force participation rate in the U.S. was 62.8%.

April’s estimates are preliminary and are subject to revision within the next few weeks.