Electricity:

Increased industrial usage and residential growth in the areas of Cohasset and Blackberry have been cited as factors contributing to the increased kilowatt usage in 2006. In addition, the installation of the automated meter reading program in 2006 recouped some past kilowatt
usage and brought readings current.

Lodging Tax:

Beginning in 2005 there was an expansion of lodging tax ordinances and several lodging properties agreed to voluntarily collect a lodging tax. Those increases are
reflected in the 3% lodging tax collected in 2005 and 2006. Motel owners report that room sales were down in 2006 due in part to less construction projects and lack of
snow early enough in 2006 to bring in recreational tourists.

Timber Deliveries:

Timber deliveries in 2006 dropped by 36% from 2005. Ainsworth Lumber Company shut down in April to make extensive repairs to their press equipment and then extended the shut down when the company experienced
problems with the new hydraulic components. During that time only minimal timber deliveries were made. In September 2006 Ainsworth suspended production due
to a depressed board (OSB) market and high costs of fiber resulting in the lay off of 135 workers and loss of logging jobs.

Employment:

On average, the number of people who were employed in Itasca County has risen slightly each year since 2003. The largest percent of these employees were employed in retail and wholesale trade areas.

Unemployment:

Itasca County’s unemployment rate in 2005 and 2006 was approximately 2% higher than the state of Minnesota’s rate. In 2006 an average of approximately
1,300 people who were available to work and had made
specific efforts to find employment were unemployed.

Annual Average Wage Paid Per Job:

Itasca County’s average wage paid per job in 2006 was approximately $10,500 less than the state average wage paid per job. This disparity has increased $500 over 2001. The employment estimates used to compute the average wage are a job rather than a person count. The dollar values have been adjusted for inflation and the values shown are in 2006 dollars.

Residential Real Estate:

For the first time in five years the average price of non-waterfront real estate sold dropped. The average price of waterfront property on the other hand continued on an upward trend, increasing by 9% in 2006 and is up 57%,
or $106,000, since 2002.

Retail Trade:

Retail trade sales in Itasca County rose significantly in the ten years between 1994 and 2004. Target opened their doors in July of 1994 and Home Depot opened in
November of 2002. The years used in this graph are the years the reports are available from the Minnesota Department of Revenue.

New Taxable Construction:

The assessed value of new taxable construction in Itasca County was $65.7 million. Major building projects new to the property tax system in 2006 include the ASV expansion, Horseshoe Professional Building, Five Star
Living of Grand Rapids, and Pine Ridge Townhomes Inc. New construction that is tax exempt is not included in the figures.

Estimated Annual Property Market
Growth:

Annual growth reflects the increase in total estimated market value from year to year. The annual growth of Itasca County property market values includes new taxable construction and increases in the assessed
market value of pre-existing properties.

Poverty:

During the 2006-07 school year 46% of Itasca County
elementary public school children qualified for free or reduced price lunch. This is significantly higher than the state average of 35% for the same school year. To qualify for free school lunch a family must have an income below 130% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) and for reduced price lunch the family income must be below 185% FPL.