INCOME TAXES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

Components of Earnings Before Income Taxes

The components of our earnings before income taxes for the last three fiscal years consisted of:

($ in millions)	2019		2018		2017
U.S.	$	549	$	1,311	$	2,153
Non-U.S.	1,050		1,034		829
	$	1,599	$	2,345	$	2,982

Provision for Income Taxes

Our provision for income taxes for the last three fiscal years consists of:

($ in millions)		2019			2018			2017
Current	-U.S. Federal	$	(272	)	$	(169	)	$	(1,253	)
	-U.S. State	(57		)	(94		)	(152		)
	-Non-U.S.	(161		)	(284		)	(178		)
		(490		)	(547		)	(1,583		)
Deferred	-U.S. Federal	141			10			61
	-U.S. State	39			(6		)	(33		)
	-Non-U.S.	(16		)	105			32
		164			109			60
		$	(326	)	$	(438	)	$	(1,523	)

Unrecognized Tax Benefits Reconciliation

The following table reconciles our unrecognized tax benefit balance for each year from the beginning of 2017 to the end of 2019:

($ in millions)	Amount
Unrecognized tax benefit at beginning of 2017	$	421
Change attributable to tax positions taken in prior years	12
Change attributable to tax positions taken during the current period	87
Decrease attributable to settlements with taxing authorities	(28		)
Decrease attributable to lapse of statute of limitations	(1		)
Unrecognized tax benefit at year-end 2017	491
Change attributable to tax positions taken in prior years	37
Change attributable to tax positions taken during the current period	148
Decrease attributable to settlements with taxing authorities	(53		)
Unrecognized tax benefit at year-end 2018	623
Change attributable to tax positions taken in prior years	(13		)
Change attributable to tax positions taken during the current period	13
Decrease attributable to settlements with taxing authorities	(54		)
Unrecognized tax benefit at year-end 2019	$	569

Schedule of Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities

The following table presents the tax effect of each type of temporary difference and carry-forward that gave rise to significant portions of our deferred tax assets and liabilities as of year-end 2019 and year-end 2018:

($ in millions)	At Year-End 2019			At Year-End 2018
Deferred Tax Assets
Employee benefits	$	267		$	261
Net operating loss carry-forwards	680			494
Accrued expenses and other reserves	162			160
Receivables, net	11			12
Tax credits	41			24
Loyalty Program	249			133
Deferred income	70			56
Lease liabilities	261			—
Other	15			13
Deferred tax assets	1,756			1,153
Valuation allowance	(616		)	(428		)
Deferred tax assets after valuation allowance	1,140			725
Deferred Tax Liabilities
Joint venture interests	(55		)	(59		)
Property and equipment	(82		)	(85		)
Intangibles	(895		)	(876		)
Right-of-use assets	(229		)	—
Self-insurance	(15		)	(19		)
Deferred tax liabilities	(1,276		)	(1,039		)
Net deferred taxes	$	(136	)	$	(314	)

Reconciliation of the U.S. Statutory Tax Rate to Effective Income Tax Rate

The following table reconciles the U.S. statutory tax rate to our effective income tax rate for the last three fiscal years:

	2019		2018		2017
U.S. statutory tax rate	21.0	%	21.0	%	35.0	%
U.S. state income taxes, net of U.S. federal tax benefit	1.6		2.5		3.1
Non-U.S. income	(3.3	)	(1.0	)	(7.3	)
Change in valuation allowance	3.4		2.6		2.0
Change in uncertain tax positions	1.9		1.0		2.2
Change in U.S. tax rate	0.0		(1.7	)	(5.5	)
Transition Tax on foreign earnings	(0.3	)	0.1		22.8
Tax on asset dispositions	(0.7	)	(2.9	)	(0.2	)
Excess tax benefits related to equity awards	(3.2	)	(1.8	)	(2.4	)
Other, net	0.0		(1.1	)	1.4
Effective rate	20.4	%	18.7	%	51.1	%