Jobless woes beset states large and small as well as the East and West coasts in January, but the nation’s midsection continued to thrive. California and Rhode Island tied for the highest unemployment rate, 9.8%, according to the latest snapshot of the regional and state unemployment situation, out Monday from the Labor Department.

The column of six states from North Dakota down to Texas had an average unemployment rate of 4.7%, well below the national level of 7.9% in January. (The U.S. jobless rate since has dropped another 0.2 percentage points, sliding to 7.7% in February.)

According to the report, conditions stayed relatively static between December 2012 and January 2013 — but improved markedly over the past year. The national unemployment rate — basically flat between the end of last year and January — fell 0.4 percentage points, to 7.9%, during the first month of the year from January 2012.