The amount of money Los Alamos National Laboratory spent with New Mexico business grew by more than 80% in fiscal year 2022; a director at the lab wants to see its economic impact on the state continue to expand.
The laboratory, which is operated by Triad National Security LLC for the National Nuclear Safety Administration, published its 2022 Economic Impact on New Mexico report on Feb. 7. The report, compiled by the lab, details figures from the fiscal year 2022 in several categories, including economic development, workforce development, employment and small business procurement.
LANL spent close to a billion dollars on businesses in New Mexico in 2022 — with over $613 million of that money going to small businesses in the state.
"We've set some really ambitious goals for our small business procurement," said Kathy Keith, director of the lab's community partnerships office. "We're always looking for partners, and there are opportunities there as our budget grows."
And that budget could continue to grow in the coming year. A federal military spending bill includes $4.6 billion to fund the lab in the fiscal year 2023, up from $4.3 billion in 2022. Those numbers are both higher than the lab's 2021 budget of $4 billion.
LANL's budget and procurement growth is matched by an expansion in other areas between fiscal year 2021 and fiscal year 2022, including:
- The total number of employees at the lab increased to 14,054 from 12,919 year over year.
- The number of businesses supported through the New Mexico Small Business assistance program increased to 291 from 174.
- The lab's total procurement spending topped $2 billion, up from $1.3 billion.
"If I had to write a headline, my headline for this report would be the laboratory is growing," Keith said.
The full reports for 2022 and 2021 can be found online.
The lab's budget has expanded as the country puts more emphasis on nuclear security and competition alongside other research areas like climate change and pandemic prevention, Keith said. Its federal allocation in 2023 includes $1.6 billion for LANL's plutonium operations to increase production of nuclear bomb cores, the Santa Fe New Mexican reports.
Keith told Business First that its employees have gradually spread across New Mexico recently, expanding out from Los Alamos county.
"It's not just Los Alamos," Keith said. "[LANL] is a major employer in the state of New Mexico, and we're really thrilled about the ripple effect that the laboratory has throughout the state of New Mexico and the impact on the state's economy."
While trying to predict if this growth will continue into the future is "like looking into a crystal ball," Keith said, she added that recent employment growth could level off after the next year.
"But even at leveling off, if we hire another 2,000 [employees], that means our workforce is going to be probably between 15 and 16 thousand," Keith said. "Which is an all-time high for us."
