Eye on Politics
Paul DeMarco
We are getting close to year end when everything starts to slow down for the holidays, but the eyes of the nation were on Alabama as it made big economic news this past week.
First of all there were two significant events in North Alabama, starting with the announcement that the Eli Lilly pharmaceutical company will bring a $6 billion manufacturing facility to Huntsville.
It is expected that this will result in the creation of some 3,450 jobs at the new plant. In addition, there will be hundreds of jobs for the construction of the site and ancillary projects. Plus, just as with the automotive sector after Mercedes came to Alabama, this will draw more biomedical industries to the state.
Just two days later, the U.S. Department of War Secretary Pete Hegseth held an unveiling ceremony at Redstone Arsenal for the new U.S. Space Command.
There was a fight with the state of Colorado on where the Command would land as the permanent headquarters, but ultimately it was awarded to Alabama. This new addition to the state will further cement Alabama’s significance when it comes to the country’s national security.
This same week Sen. Tommy Tuberville announced that the Federal National Mortgage Association would relocate its San Francisco offices to Birmingham. Fannie Mae, which owns and guarantees home loans through the secondary mortgage market, will make the move in early 2026.
Birmingham’s history as a financial hub in the South will benefit from the relocation of the California offices to Alabama.
Finally, there was a shot in the arm to rural Alabama with Bad Boy Mowers coming to Monroeville and investing more than $10 million in a new tractor assembly plant. The new plant will infuse more money and jobs in to Monroe County and the surrounding communities.
So while the year 2025 is coming to an end, it is closing out with tremendous news for the future of Alabama’s economy.
Paul DeMarco is a former member of the Alabama House of Representatives and can be found on X at @Paul_DeMarco.
