NEW ACCOUNTING STANDARDS

ASU No. 2014-09, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606)”

In May 2014, the FASB issued ASU No. 2014-09, which outlines a single comprehensive model for entities to use in accounting for revenue arising from contracts with customers and supersedes most current revenue recognition guidance, including industry-specific guidance. The core principle of the revenue model is that an entity should identify the various performance obligations in a contract, allocate the transaction price among the performance obligations and recognize revenue when (or as) the entity satisfies each performance obligation. This ASU is effective for periods beginning after December 15, 2017.

The Company has formed a revenue recognition standard implementation team that is working through several implementation issues described below. The Company has evaluated this standard and is planning to adopt this standard in 2018 upon its effective date. The Company is currently expecting to use a modified retrospective method of adoption, which would require a cumulative adjustment to opening retained earnings, as opposed to a full retrospective application. The Company is not far enough along in the adoption process to determine the amount of cumulative adjustment necessary.

Since the majority of Avista Corp.’s revenue is from rate-regulated sales of electricity and natural gas to retail customers and revenue is recognized as energy is delivered to these customers, the Company does not expect a significant change in operating revenues or net income. The Company is in the process of reviewing and analyzing certain contracts with customers (most of which are related to wholesale sales of power and natural gas), but has not yet identified any significant differences in revenue recognition between current GAAP and ASU No. 2014-09.

During the implementation process, the Company has identified several unresolved issues, the most significant of which are as follows based on our current assessment:

Contributions in Aid of Construction – There is the potential that contributions in aid of construction (CIAC) could be recognized as revenue upon the adoption of ASU No. 2014-09. Under current GAAP, CIACs are accounted for as an offset to the cost of utility plant in service.

Utility-Related Taxes Collected from Customers – There are questions on the presentation of utility related taxes collected from customers (primarily state excise taxes and city utility taxes) on a gross basis. Under current GAAP, the Company is allowed to record these utility related taxes on a gross basis in revenue when billed to customers with an offset included in taxes other than income taxes in operating expenses. The Company is evaluating whether this presentation is appropriate under ASU 2014-09 or whether they should be presented on a net basis.

Collectibility - There are questions regarding the requirement that collection of a sale be probable and how, or if, utilities should consider bad debt collection mechanisms (riders, base rate adjustments, etc.) in assessing probability of collection on sales to low income customers. If the bad debt recovery mechanisms cannot be considered, there is the potential that certain sales to low income customers cannot be recognized as revenue until payment is received from the customers.

The Company is monitoring utility industry implementation guidance as it relates to unresolved issues to determine if there will be an industry consensus regarding accounting and presentation of these items.

In addition to the unresolved issues described above, the Company also expects significant changes to its revenue-related footnote disclosures. The Company continues to evaluate what information would be most useful for users of the financial statements, including information already provided elsewhere in the document outside the footnote disclosures. These additional disclosures could include the disaggregation of revenues by geographic location, type of service, source of revenue or customer class. Also, the Company expects enhanced disclosures regarding its revenue recognition policies and elections.

ASU No. 2016-02 “Leases (Topic 842).”

In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-02. This ASU introduces a new lessee model that requires most leases to be capitalized and shown on the balance sheet with corresponding lease assets and liabilities. The standard also aligns certain of the underlying principles of the new lessor model with those in Topic 606, the FASB’s new revenue recognition standard. Furthermore, this ASU addresses other issues that arise under the current lease model; for example, eliminating the required use of bright-line tests in current GAAP for determining lease classification (operating leases versus capital leases). This ASU also includes enhanced disclosures surrounding leases. This ASU is effective for periods beginning on or after December 15, 2018; however, early adoption is permitted. Upon adoption, this ASU must be applied using a modified retrospective approach to the earliest period presented, which will likely require restatements of previously issued financial statements. The modified retrospective approach includes a number of optional practical expedients that entities may elect to apply. The Company evaluated this standard and determined that it will most likely not early adopt this standard before its effective date in 2019. The Company has formed a lease standard implementation team that is working through the implementation process. The most significant implementation challenge identified thus far relates to identifying a complete population of leases and potential leases under the new lease standard. Also, the Company is monitoring utility industry implementation guidance as it relates to several unresolved issues to determine if there will be an industry consensus, including whether right-of-ways are considered leases. The Company cannot, at this time, estimate the potential impact on its future financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

ASU No. 2016-09 “Compensation—Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Improvements to Employee Share-Based Payment Accounting.”

In March 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-09. This ASU simplified several aspects of the accounting for employee share-based payment transactions including:


•	allowing excess tax benefits or tax deficiencies to be recognized as income tax benefits or expenses in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income rather than in Additional Paid in Capital (APIC),


•	excess tax benefits no longer represent a financing cash inflow on the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows and instead will be included as an operating activity,


•	requiring excess tax benefits and tax deficiencies to be excluded from the calculation of diluted earnings per share, whereas under previous accounting guidance, these amounts had to be estimated and included in the calculation,


•	allowing forfeitures to be accounted for as they occur, instead of estimating forfeitures, and


•	changing the statutory tax withholding requirements for share-based payments.

The Company early adopted this standard during the second quarter of 2016, with a retrospective effective date of January 1, 2016. The adoption of this standard resulted in a recognized income tax benefit of $1.6 million in 2016 associated with excess tax benefits on settled share-based employee payments. Because this standard was adopted in the second quarter of 2016, but had a retrospective effective date of January 1, 2016, the effects from the adoption were reflected in the first quarter of 2016 and the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for that quarter were recast from those presented when the financial statements were originally issued.

ASU No. 2017-07 “Compensation-Retirement Benefits (Topic 715): Improving the Presentation of Net Periodic Pension Cost and Net Periodic Postretirement Benefit Cost”

In March 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-07, which amends the income statement presentation of the components of net period benefit cost for an entity’s defined benefit pension and other postretirement plans. Under current GAAP, net benefit cost consists of several components that reflect different aspects of an employer’s financial arrangements as well as the cost of benefits earned by employees. These components are aggregated and reported net in the financial statements. ASU No. 2017-07 requires entities to (1) disaggregate the current service-cost component from the other components of net benefit cost (other components) and present it with other current compensation costs for related employees in the income statement and (2) present the other components elsewhere in the income statement and outside of income from operations.

In addition, only the service-cost component of net benefit cost is eligible for capitalization (e.g., as part of utility plant). This is a change from current practice, under which entities capitalize the aggregate net benefit cost to utility plant when applicable, in accordance with Federal Energy and Regulatory Commission (FERC) accounting guidance. Avista Corp. is a rate-regulated entity and all components of net benefit cost are currently recovered from rate payers as a component of utility plant and under the new ASU these costs will continue to be recovered from rate payers in the same manner over the depreciable lives of utility plant. As all such costs are expected to continue to be recoverable, the components that are no longer eligible to be recorded as a component of plant for GAAP will be recorded as regulatory assets.

This ASU is effective for periods beginning after December 15, 2017 and early adoption is permitted. Upon adoption, entities must use a retrospective transition method to adopt the requirement for separate presentation in the income statement and a prospective transition method to adopt the requirement to limit the capitalization of benefit costs to the service-cost component. The Company does not expect to early adopt this standard and does not expect a material impact on its future financial condition, results of operations or cash flows upon adoption of this standard.