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Lt. Gov. Driscoll emphasizes SHIELD initiative, cites defense sector’s economic role in Massachusetts
Summary
Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll told attendees that Massachusetts is a leading defense state, citing about 130,000 defense-sector jobs and an estimated $48 billion in defense-related GDP, and described SHIELD as a strategy to align research and industry to create jobs and support national security.
At the second annual Military Appreciation Day, Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll used her remarks to cast Massachusetts as a national leader in defense-related research and industry and outlined the administration’s SHIELD initiative.
Driscoll said the defense sector employs roughly 130,000 people in Massachusetts and accounts for about $48,000,000,000 in the state’s GDP—figures she presented as roughly 7% of the total state economy. "We are 1 of the top 10 states for defense spending," she said, and argued the sector is on par with the state’s biotechnology industry in terms of R&D and employment.
She described SHIELD (Strategic Hub for Innovation, Exchange, and Leadership in Defense) as a cross-cutting effort to align advanced manufacturing, applied research and emerging technologies—AI, cybersecurity and next-generation energy systems—into a coordinated strategy to both safeguard national security and create jobs in Massachusetts.
Driscoll framed the initiative as an economic development priority that also serves national security goals: by directing state support to clusters of research, manufacturing and commercialization, the administration aims to deepen the ties between military installations, academic institutions and private-sector partners.
Her remarks positioned the defense sector as an area of both workforce opportunity for young people and continued innovation for the Commonwealth. The Lieutenant Governor closed by thanking veterans and military families for their service and connecting defense-sector work back to the state’s broader economic strategy.
