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Actually Ted, since Latah County derives about 66% of its regional income
from subsidies and transfer payments (yes, we are in effect a welfare
county), if Boise were to suffer significant economic decline, we would
feel the effect rather quickly (lower subsidies).<br><br>
Since we don't have a robust export-based economy, we will never have
economic power. To have economic power, you first, have to pay your
own way - we don't.<br><br>
At 11:37 AM 6/3/2006, you wrote:<br>
<blockquote type=cite class=cite cite="">All:<br>
<br>
One major reason Boise and Boise State have gained advantages over North
Idaho, Moscow and the U of I can be summed up in one word:
computers.<br>
<br>
Micron is Idaho's largest private employer, employing around 10,000 in
the Boise area alone, with HP adding another 4000 jobs to the Boise
area.<br>
<br>
According to a 2005 economic analysis, Micron alone accounts for 3.7
percent of Idaho's economic activity, employs 24,000 statewide (these are
not low paying service sector Wal-Mart/McDonalds jobs), and contributes
one billion (as in 1,000,000,000 $) dollars in personal income to Idaho.
<br>
<br>
Read data here:<br>
<br>
<font size=2 color="#0000FF">
<a href="http://download.micron.com/pdf/presentations/idahoimpact/micronimpact.pdf">
http://download.micron.com/pdf/presentations/idahoimpact/micronimpact.pdf</a>
</font><font size=2>.</font> <br>
<br>
Many times around Moscow when I ask someone who is Idaho's largest
private employer I get an answer that ignores Idaho's high tech
economy.<br>
<br>
Take away just Micron and HP from Boise, and this subtraction of economic
power would shift some of the influence of Boise/Boise State back to
North Idaho and the U of I: <br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.boisechamber.org/ec_dev/employers.htm">
http://www.boisechamber.org/ec_dev/employers.htm</a><br>
<br><br>
<font size=2><b>EMPLOYER NAME<br>
</b></font><br>
<font size=2><b>TOTAL JOBS </b></font><font size=1>(01/01/05)</font>
<br><br>
<br><br>
<font size=2>Micron Technology, Inc. <br>
</font><br>
<br><br>
<font size=2>9,500 <br>
</font><br>
<font size=2>Mountain Home Air Force Base<br>
</font><br>
<font size=2>5,250** <br>
</font><br>
<font size=2>Saint Luke's Regional Medical Center <br>
</font><br>
<font size=2>4,300 <br>
</font><br>
<font size=2>Boise School District <br>
</font><br>
<font size=2>4,000* <br>
</font><br>
<font size=2>Hewlett-Packard Company <br>
</font><br>
<font size=2>4,000 <br>
</font>-----------------<br>
<br>
This impacts the influence of Boise State:<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060505/NEWS0202/605050367/1029/NEWS02">
http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060505/NEWS0202/605050367/1029/NEWS02</a>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<font size=5><b>Micron gives $5 million for BSU doctoral program<br><br>
</b></font>The Micron Technology Foundation said Thursday that it will
donate $5 million to help Boise State University develop its new Ph.D.
program in electrical and computer engineering.<br><br>
The doctoral program is a big step toward making BSU a metropolitan
research university with a national reputation, university President Bob
Kustra said. Science and technology officials agreed. <br><br>
"We have lost our professors in the past to other states because
they had better grants for research," said Jason Crawforth,
president and chief executive officer of Boise-based TreeTop Technologies
and a member of the Governor's Science and Technology Advisory Council.
"If you think about it, money is what drives the best professors to
do the best research, and if you have better professors, you have better
students." <br>
Last year, BSU told the State Board of Education it needed about $5
million over the next three years to start the program, and then the
school could keep it funded through research grants. Micron will spread
$3 million of its gift over the next four years and use the remaining $2
million to match other donations that BSU receives for the program. <br>
The engineering school plans to use the money to add two or three new
faculty positions, offer competitive stipends to its doctoral students
and renovate its laboratories, said Cheryl Schrader, dean of the College
of Engineering. <br>
<br>
-------------<br>
<br>
And it looks like Micron is maintaining its economic power on the global
chip market, despite the slowdowns and layoffs that happened during the
high tech collapse after the Clinton years economic boom bubble burst:
<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060518/NEWS0202/605180320/1029/NEWS02">
http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060518/NEWS0202/605180320/1029/NEWS02</a>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<font size=5><b>Micron smiles for the camera<br>
</font><font size=4>Chip maker ready to unveil new technology that will
allow it to expand presence in digital camera market</b></font><br><br>
Micron Technology will unveil a new imaging chip today that could help
the company expand into the digital camera market. <br><br>
Micron, Idaho's largest private employer, already dominates the mobile
phone market. Its CMOS complementary metal-oxide semiconductor image
sensors are used in one-third of the camera phones on the market.<br>
<br>
-------------<br>
<br>
Ted Moffett<br>
<br>
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