Income Taxes |
3 Months Ended | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Mar. 31, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Income Taxes | Income Taxes Effective Income Tax Rate The income tax provision consisted of the following:
For the three months ended March 31, 2019 and 2018, NRG's overall effective tax rate was lower than the statutory rate of 21%, primarily due to the tax benefit for the change in valuation allowance, partially offset by current state tax expense. Uncertain Tax Benefits As of March 31, 2019, NRG has recorded a non-current tax liability of $31 million for uncertain tax benefits from positions taken on various state income tax returns, including accrued interest. For the three months ended March 31, 2019, NRG accrued an immaterial amount of interest relating to the uncertain tax benefits. As of March 31, 2019, NRG had cumulative interest and penalties related to these uncertain tax benefits of $5 million. The Company recognizes interest and penalties related to uncertain tax benefits in income tax expense. NRG is subject to examination by taxing authorities for income tax returns filed in the U.S. federal jurisdiction and various state and foreign jurisdictions including operations located in Australia. The Company is no longer subject to U.S. federal income tax examinations for years prior to 2015. With few exceptions, state and local income tax examinations are no longer open for years before 2010. |