Defense spending in Arizona fell 18 percent in fiscal 2014, about twice as much as defense spending nationwide. The biggest losses were in Maricopa County.
The 30 percent reduction in U.S. Defense spending in Arizona’s largest county was mainly the result of the loss of a major military health-care contract by Phoenix-based TriWest Healthcare Alliance.
That $2.6 billion loss was partially offset by increased spending at Boeing, which makes the Apache attack helicopter in Mesa. Defense spending in Pima County was down 4 percent, according to a report in the Arizona Daily Star.
Arizona fell two spots, to 10th, in a ranking of the states by their overall defense spending, as a percentage of the gross domestic product. The Defense Department spent 4-percent of its budget in the state last year, compared to 5-percent in fiscal 2013.
Forecasts for defense spending show continued cuts, though not at the pace of those between 2013 and 2014.