Department of Defense contracts brought $9.3 billion of federal spending into northern Alabama in 2019, with three counties in the region among the 10 in the state with the highest spending, according to the Local Defense Community Cooperation, which tracks the spending.
The U.S. Army’s Redstone Arsenal is the source of much of the spending.
“It comes as no surprise [that] Redstone Arsenal is the economic engine that drives not only Madison County’s economy but the economy for the entire north Alabama region,” said Madison County Commission Chairman Dale Strong in a statement. “The continued growth and development of Redstone and the many agencies on this federal campus, as well as the corporations that support these agencies, is paramount to the success of our regional economy.”
The top 10 counties for spending were:
- Madison – $9.2 billion, up $400 million
- Mobile – $1.5 billion, up $100 million
- Dale – $857.2 million, up $61.8 million
- Montgomery – $269.7 million, up $8.11 million
- Calhoun – $269 million, up $98.5 million
- Limestone – $94.2 million, up $18.33 million
- Talladega – $87.3 million, up $8.6 million
- Jefferson – $71.3 million, down $6 million
- Marshall – $48.4 million (not ranked top 10 in 2018)
- Dallas – $41 million (not ranked top 10 in 2018)
The OLDCC, formerly the Office of Economic Adjustment, reported no surprises in the categories it tracks compared to DOD money spent in 2018.
