Federal defense spending in Maine rose to $4.2 billion in fiscal year 2023. That's an increase of more than 15% from the year before, according to a new report released by the Department of Defense, and the highest on record going back more than a decade.
Most of that money went to defense contractors. Bath Iron Works' parent company General Dynamics took in more than $2 billion in contracts, the largest single line-item.
The defense department's payroll in Maine topped $900 million in 2023.
The bulk of those dollars flowed to York County, home to several thousand civilian employees of the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, and to Penobscot County, which hosts the Maine Air National Guard's refueling wing at the Bangor airport.
In total, defense spending accounted for 4.6% of Maine' GDP last year.
