Micron Technology is one of Idaho’s largest employers, but it only pays property taxes on a fraction of its taxable value. The reason? An unsuccessful attempt to lure a nuclear company to East Idaho during the Great Recession.
The company paid $4.75 million in property taxes in 2019, only 23% of what it would owe if the semiconductor company’s property was taxed at its full value, according to records from Ada County. In 2011, The State of Idaho capped the taxable value of Micron’s property at $400 million – forever. But over time, the actual value of its property rose to $1.86 billion last year.