Florida's unemployment rate is now 7 percent.
The state of Florida released new numbers on Friday showing that the state's unemployment rate dropped .1 percent in August.
The rate had been flat at 7.1 percent for three straight months.
There are now an estimated 656,000 people out of work in the state.
Gov. Rick Scott has used the state's dropping unemployment rate as part of his re-election pitch for next year.
State economists, however, released an analysis this summer showing a reason for the unemployment decline has been people leaving the labor force or delaying their search for a job.
Florida's unemployment rate is below the national average of 7.0 percent.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
