Boston-based footwear extraordinaire New Balance is in for a large payday. In an attempt to buy American, the Department of Defense has awarded New Balance a hefty contract to provide military recruits with sneakers made domestically.

It’s unclear exactly how much the DOD’s commission is worth, but according to the Associated Press Congresswoman Niki Tsongas estimates the military has doled out some $180 million yearly for stipends for recruits to purchase sneakers of their choosing.

“I applaud the Department of Defense for making this policy change, which will require all services to treat athletic footwear like every other uniform item,” Congresswoman Tsongas said in a statement via the Boston Herald. “This policy change will boost job growth, spur economic development and innovation and give the brave men and women of our armed forces better gear.”

Representative Tsongas has been advocating for the military to buy American shoes for at least a year. In June 2013, the congresswoman introduced an amendment to the House of Representatives’ National Defense Authorization Act that aims to boost American manufacturing jobs starting with sneakers. New Balance currently puts their goods together in Lawrence, Boston and up in Maine.

The Department of Defense footwear must be 100 percent Berry-compliant, which means all shoes (and other goods for that matter) must comply with the Berry Amendment. Compliance in this instance means the DOD must give favor to American-made goods.

According to the Herald, already five other companies are in the process of making footwear applicable to the DOD’s needs and requirements.

“This is a big win for manufacturers in Maine and Massachusetts and across the country,” said Matt LeBretton, the company’s vice president of public affairs, in a statement to the publication. “This is really big.”

Image via New Balance’s Facebook