Department of Revenue tells Treasure County the drop in taxable value is driven by centrally assessed accounts, not local building counts

Department of Revenue staff briefed Treasure County officials on how taxable value is calculated and why the county's certified taxable value fell both in absolute terms and versus nearby counties.

An area manager said the office values town properties by comparable sales and out-of-town properties by cost and depreciation, while centrally assessed properties (railroads, utilities, large pipelines) are calculated based on company profitability. "Out of that, centrally assessed was 2,772,520," the presenter said when asked about Treasure County's totals, and commissioners were told that roughly 50% of the county's taxable value is centrally assessed.

The Department's representative said personal property categories and centrally assessed accounts had declined in the last cycle and noted that Burlington Northern (BNSF) had dropped in value—largely accounting for much of the county's fall. "So half? Yeah. 50% of our taxable value is Burlington Northern," a participant summarized during the discussion.

Officials and Department staff discussed staffing and detection limits: department staff said they cover multiple counties from a regional office and rely on electrical and plumbing permits, 911 addressing, road-crew reports and occasional imagery flyovers to find new construction. The area manager said that Treasure County's staff shortages and geography make it harder to find every new building, and that the department is looking to improve imagery to detect changes.

Commissioners said they want more outreach and asked the Department to provide lists of parcels on the tax roll; Department staff said they would follow up. The exchange concluded with both sides agreeing to additional communication and to share findings about centrally assessed accounts and new construction.