AUGUSTA (AP) — State officials say that Maine’s unemployment rate fell to 5.5 percent in June.

The jobless rate released by the Maine Department of Labor on Friday is the lowest reported in the state in nearly six years.

It’s down 0.2 percentage points since May and more than 1 percentage point since last year.

The department says that 39,300 Mainers were unemployed, down 8,200 people over the year.

The national unemployment rate also dipped from 6.3 percent to 6.1 percent in May. June was the 81st consecutive month that Maine’s employment to population ratio was above the national average. Maine’s unemployment rate was also lower than the average of New England states, which was 5.7 percent.

The department says that a number of sectors saw job growth in June.