PRINEVILLE, OR -- Prineville's labor market has shifted in the few months following major layoffs from Woodgrain Millwork, which left more than 200 people in the low-paying timber industry without work. But as the market transitions, local public officials are optimistic about the potential for job creation at local data centers. In the recent February unemployment report, Crook County saw a slight decrease in unemployment. However, regional economist Damon Runberg is skeptical about actual improvement. "Crook County has seen an actual decline in their labor force," Runberg told KBND News. "It could be folks retiring, people moving out, looking for work in other places." 

But, despite the area shedding 30 jobs, recent legislation still has Prineville Mayor Betty Roppe relieved. "We have avoided harm," she told KBND news. Oregon Governor Kate Brown signed Senate Bill 611 into law, Thursday, allowing data centers to avoid paying property taxes based on the "value of the brand."  

Prineville has been transitioning its economic growth model from mills to data centers, since Facebook's facility opened five years ago. Apple followed, two years ago. When the centers relocated, the City of Prineville negotiated special tax rates.  In exchange, data centers agreed to pay a mandatory minimum of 150% of the average local wage, and hire a minimum number of people. 

With the growth of Prineville's data centers, the Oregon Department of Revenue began looking at imposing property taxes based on the value of the companies, which would have charged arger companies potentially millions more dollars per year. For the data centers currently in the Enterprise Zone and receiving tax benefits, the result could have been disastrous to keeping the centers local. Roppe says the impact could have caused the city to lose data centers, following December's victory with Crooked River legislation, which opened up water rights for data center expansion.  "What we had heard from our local data centers was that they were planning to increase their footprint," Roppe said. "And that they would not do that [if the property taxes increased]. They did not have to be in the state of Oregon. They have other data centers."

SB 611 now forces the Department of Revenue to keep the property taxes for data centers low, in what Roppe believes will be an economic boost.  "We believe it will be of great value of us, for bringing new businesses to the community," Roppe says.

When it comes to the unemployed lower-wage workers, Roppe doesn't want the future of the city to completely depend on data centers. The city has been brainstorming ways to bring back and expand local timber and tire products. But Mayor Roppe says the centers are a way to attract higher-paying, education-based jobs. "Jobs are of upmost to the City of Prineville," Roppe says. "And we want to diversify. We want to have many more avenues of revenue. This gives us a means of doing so."