Oklahoma's unemployment rate has bucked national trends and declined over the last year.

But economists say the positive jobs figures have more to do with the booming energy industry than a new anti-illegal-immigration law that has led some Hispanic workers to leave the state.

Oklahoma's unemployment rate dropped more than 1 percent since March 2007, to just over 3 percent in March 2008, giving Oklahoma the fourth lowest rate in the nation.

Economists say the low rate is mainly the result of Oklahoma's bustling oil and gas industry, high commodity prices and the state's insulation from the national housing crisis.

State Representative Randy Terrill is the author of the new state law targeting illegal immigrants. He agrees the booming energy industry is fueling job growth, but he says his bill also is having a positive impact on the state's economy.

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