In essence, Minnesota Power acts as a tax collector for local taxing districts. Customers of cooperative and municipal utilities are taxed differently. As a result their customers generally pay far less property taxes yet enjoy the same services provided by local taxing districts. Minnesota Power's taxes on farm service are discounted, but still exceeds what cooperatives pay by a significant margin. And everything Minnesota Power collects from its customers goes to the local taxing districts.
Municipal utilities pay no property taxes.
They pay nothing to the counties or school districts. Customers of different types of electric suppliers are taxed differently even though they are purchasing the identical products. Customers of Minnesota Power and other shareholder owned utilities are the most highly taxed and are, in effect, subsidizing local government services received by their cooperative and municipal neighbors.