The Madison County Board of Supervisors has denied Amazon’s bid to adjust the estimated value of its local data centers—a change that could have cost the county nearly $6 million in tax revenue this year.
During an Aug. 17 meeting, board members signed off on the county tax assessor’s valuation of five active data center buildings in Canton, Mississippi, rejecting an appeal from Amazon that assigned a much lower value to the properties in question. The alternative valuation, if approved, would have effectively wiped away $5.8 million in tax revenue that Madison County expects to collect from Amazon this fiscal year, according to estimates from the tax assessor’s office.
“As of today, the board voted to uphold the tax assessor’s recommendation (of value),” Madison County Tax Assessor Norman Cannady confirmed to the Mississippi Free Press on Tuesday. Accepting Amazon’s reduced valuation for the data centers “would definitely have an impact on the county’s budget,” he added.
Amazon’s data centers are expected to deliver a financial windfall for Madison County, generating tens of millions of dollars in annual tax revenue that will be shared among municipal governments, school districts and the local community college. The county has entered into two fee-in-lieu-of-taxes agreements with the tech giant for its data center campuses in Canton and Ridgeland, allowing Amazon to pay a reduced tax rate in exchange for sustained investments in local communities.
Even with these agreements, Madison County’s share of data center tax revenue is projected to climb steadily over the next five years, reaching $16.5 million by 2029 and $29 million by 2031, Madison County Economic Development Authority attorney Chris Pace announced earlier this summer. While part of the tax revenue will go toward repaying a $215 million state infrastructure loan associated with the data centers, the county will keep 100% of the money once the debt is paid.
“It’s an embarrassment of … riches,” Pace told the Madison County Board of Supervisors at a July 6 meeting. Amazon expects to bring five more data center buildings online this year alone, he explained, and the company will continue adding to that total across its two campuses.
Much of the projected windfall from Amazon, however, hinges on the county’s valuation of the company’s data centers—a number that dictates what Amazon must pay in property taxes under the FILOT agreements. At the Aug. 17 board meeting, Amazon representatives disputed Cannady’s valuation of about $292 million per building, claiming that it does not represent the facilities’ actual market value. Representatives proposed an alternative valuation of around $69 million per facility—a difference of nearly $223 million—using a replacement cost approach from an industry manual.
“We feel that the market value (of the data centers) would come closer to $69 million,” Amazon representative James Polianski told the board.
In his own comments to the board, Cannady defended his office’s assessment of value, noting that the $292 million estimate reflects the “highly specialized” nature of the buildings and the systems they contain, among other considerations. He added that despite repeated requests from his office, Amazon has declined to share construction cost information for its data centers in Canton, making it difficult to assess the company’s opinion of value.
“There’s no better way to determine replacement costs than the actual cost to replace that facility, which they have,” Cannady said Monday. “They were not willing to share any of that with us.”
When Board President Gerald Steen asked why Amazon wouldn’t provide this information if it supported a reduced valuation for the data centers, Polianski said company policies prohibit the disclosure of actual project costs due to competition and proprietary concerns.
While Madison County has formally adopted the tax assessor’s valuation for the 2026 tax roll, Amazon still has the right to contest the decision through litigation, Cannady told the Mississippi Free Press. The company could also push for lower property valuations in subsequent years as more of its data center facilities become operational.
The Mississippi Free Press reached out to members of the board for comment on Amazon’s appeal but did not hear back by press time.
In a statement to the Mississippi Free Press, Amazon highlighted its “tremendous” partnership with Madison County, noting that their agreement will deliver lasting benefits to county residents and Mississippians as a whole.
“We’re proud of our planned data center investments, our more than 7,000 full- and part-time employees, and an economic footprint supporting over 20,000 additional jobs across construction, logistics, and professional services,” a company spokesperson wrote in an Aug. 20 email. “We have found that as we work with communities, it is essential that methodologies are built that successfully capture data, ensure accurate reporting and support a long-term relationship. We look forward to continuing to work with the officials in Madison to ensure the underlying methodology behind the initial tax calculation is sound, accurate, and reflects our shared understanding—and feel confident we can do so. In the meantime, we want to stress that our commitment to the community is significant and we remain committed to investing in the area, its people and its progress.”
This story has been updated to include comments from Amazon.
Follow the Mississippi Free Press’ coverage of data centers and read past stories here.
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