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Accounting Policies
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2023
Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents include cash on hand and highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less.
Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents
Restricted cash and cash equivalents represents (1) the cash held in reserve by the indenture trustees pursuant to the indenture governing certain of the Company's debt instruments, (2) cash securing performance obligations such as letters of credit and (3) any other cash whose use is limited by contractual provisions. The restriction of rental cash receipts is a critical feature of certain of the Company's debt instruments due to the applicable indenture trustee's ability to utilize the restricted cash for the payment of (1) debt service costs, (2) ground rents, (3) real estate or personal property taxes, (4) insurance premiums related to towers, (5) other assessments by governmental authorities and potential environmental remediation costs or (6) a portion of advance rents from tenants. The restricted cash in excess of required reserve balances is subsequently released to the Company in accordance with the terms of the indentures. See note 15 for a reconciliation of cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash and cash equivalents.
Receivables Allowance
An allowance for credit losses is recorded as an offset to accounts receivable. The Company uses judgment in estimating this allowance and considers historical collections, current credit status, or contractual provisions. Additions to the allowance for credit losses are charged either to "Site rental costs of operations" or to "Services and other costs of operations," as appropriate, and deductions from the allowance are recorded when specific accounts receivable are written off as uncollectible.
Lease Accounting
General. The Company evaluates whether a contract meets the definition of a lease whenever a contract grants a party the right to control the use of an identified asset for a period of time in exchange for consideration. To the extent the identified asset is able to be shared among multiple parties, the Company has determined that one party does not have control of the identified asset and the contract is not considered a lease. The Company accounts for contracts that do not meet the definition of a lease under other relevant accounting guidance (such as ASC 606 for revenue from contracts with customers).
Lessee. For its Tower segment, the Company's lessee arrangements primarily consist of ground leases for land under towers. Ground leases for land are specific to each site, generally contain an initial term between five to 15 years and are renewable (and cancellable after a notice period) at the Company's option. The Company also enters into term ground leases, such as term easements, in which it prepays the entire term. For its Fiber segment, the Company's lessee arrangements primarily include leases of fiber assets to support the Company's small cells and fiber solutions.
The majority of the Company's lease agreements have certain termination rights that provide for cancellation after a notice period and multiple renewal options exercisable at the Company's option. The Company includes renewal option periods in its calculation of the estimated lease term when it determines the options are reasonably certain to be exercised. When such renewal options are deemed to be reasonably certain, the estimated lease term determined under ASC 842 will be greater than the non-cancelable term of the contractual arrangement. Although certain renewal periods are included in the estimated lease term, the Company would have the ability to terminate or elect to not renew a particular lease if business conditions warrant such a decision.
The Company classifies its lessee arrangements at inception as either operating leases or finance leases. A lease is classified as a finance lease if at least one of the following criteria is met: (1) the lease transfers ownership of the underlying asset to the lessee, (2) the lease grants the lessee an option to purchase the underlying asset that the lessee is reasonably certain to exercise, (3) the lease term is for a major part of the remaining economic life of the underlying asset, (4) the present value of the sum of the lease payments equals or exceeds substantially all of the fair value of the underlying asset, or (5) the underlying asset is of such a specialized nature that it is expected to have no alternative use to the lessor at the end of the lease term. A lease is classified as an operating lease if none of the five criteria described above for finance lease classification is met.
Right-of-use ("ROU") assets associated with operating leases are included in "Operating lease right-of-use assets" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. Current and long-term portions of lease liabilities related to operating leases are included in "Current portion of operating lease liabilities" and "Operating lease liabilities" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet, respectively. ROU assets represent the Company's right to use an underlying asset for the estimated lease term and lease liabilities represent the Company's present value of its future lease payments. In assessing its leases and determining its lease liability at lease commencement or upon modification, the Company is not able to readily determine the rate implicit for its lessee arrangements, and thus uses its incremental borrowing rate on a collateralized basis to determine the present value of the lease payments. The Company's ROU assets are measured as the balance of the lease liability plus any prepaid or accrued lease payments and any unamortized initial direct costs. For both the Towers and Fiber segments, operating lease expenses are recognized on a ratable basis, regardless of whether the payment terms require the Company to make payments annually, semi-annually, quarterly, monthly, or for the entire term in advance. Certain of the Company's ground lease and fiber lease agreements contain fixed escalation clauses (such as fixed dollar or fixed percentage increases) or inflation-based escalation clauses (such as those tied to the change in consumer price index ("CPI")). If the payment terms include fixed escalators, upfront payments, or rent-free periods, the effect of such increases is recognized on a straight-line basis. The Company calculates the straight-line expense over the contract's estimated lease term, including any renewal option periods that the Company deems reasonably certain to be exercised.
Lease agreements may also contain provisions for a contingent payment based on (1) the revenues derived from the communications infrastructure located on the leased asset, (2) the change in CPI or (3) the usage of the leased asset. The Company's contingent payments are considered variable lease payments and are (1) not included in the initial measurement of the ROU asset or lease liability due to the uncertainty of the payment amount and (2) recorded as expense in the period such contingencies are resolved.
ROU assets associated with finance leases are included in "Property and equipment, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. Lease liabilities associated with finance leases are included in "Current maturities of debt and other obligations" and "Debt and other long-term obligations" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. For both its Towers and Fiber segments, the Company measures the lease liability for finance leases using the effective interest method. The initial lease liability is increased to reflect interest on the liability and decreased to reflect payments made during the period. Interest on the lease liability is determined each period during the lease term as the amount that results in a constant periodic discount rate on the remaining balance of the liability. The Company depreciates ROU assets for finance leases on a ratable basis over the applicable lease term.
The Company reviews the carrying value of its ROU assets for impairment, similar to its other long-lived assets, whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amounts may not be recoverable. The Company could record impairments in the future if there are changes in (1) long-term market conditions, (2) expected future operating results or (3) the utility of the assets that negatively impact the fair value of its ROU assets.
Lessor. The Company's lessor arrangements primarily include tenant contracts for dedicated space (including dedicated fiber) on its shared communications infrastructure. The Company classifies its leases at inception as operating, direct financing or sales-type leases. A lease is classified as a sales-type lease if at least one of the following criteria is met: (1) the lease transfers ownership of the underlying asset to the lessee, (2) the lease grants the lessee an option to purchase the underlying asset that the lessee is reasonably certain to exercise, (3) the lease term is for a major part of the remaining economic life of the underlying asset, (4) the present value of the sum of the lease payments equals or exceeds substantially all of the fair value of the underlying assets or (5) the underlying asset is of such a specialized nature that it is expected to have no alternative use to the lessor at the end of the lease term. Furthermore, when none of the above criteria is met, a lease is classified as a direct financing lease if both of the following criteria are met: (1) the present value of the of the sum of the lease payments and any residual value guaranteed by the lessee, that is not already reflected in the lease payments, equals or exceeds the fair value of the underlying asset and (2) it is probable that the lessor will collect the lease payments plus any amount necessary to satisfy a residual value guarantee. A lease is classified as an operating lease if it does not qualify as a sales-type or direct financing lease. Currently, the Company classifies all of its lessor arrangements as operating leases.
Site rental revenues from the Company’s lessor arrangements are recognized on a straight-line, ratable basis over the fixed, non-cancelable term of the relevant tenant contract, regardless of whether the payments from the tenant are received in equal monthly amounts during the life of a tenant contract. Certain of the Company's tenant contracts contain fixed escalation clauses (such as fixed-dollar or fixed-percentage increases) or inflation-based escalation clauses (such as those tied to the change in CPI). If the payment terms call for fixed escalators, upfront payments, or rent-free periods, the rental revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis over the fixed, non-cancelable term of the agreement. When calculating straight-line site rental revenues, the Company considers all fixed elements of tenant contractual escalation provisions.
Certain of the Company's arrangements with tenants in its Fiber segment contain both lease and non-lease components. In such circumstances, the Company has determined (1) the timing and pattern of transfer for the lease and non-lease component are the same and (2) the stand-alone lease component would be classified as an operating lease. As such, the Company has aggregated certain non-lease components with lease components and has determined that the lease components (generally dedicated fiber) represent the predominant component of the arrangement.
Property and Equipment
Property and equipment is stated at cost, net of accumulated depreciation. Property and equipment includes land owned through fee interests and perpetual easements, which have no definite life. Depreciation is computed utilizing the straight-line method at rates based upon the estimated useful lives of the various classes of assets. Depreciation for the majority of communications infrastructure is computed with a useful life equal to the shorter of 20 years or the term of the underlying ground lease (where applicable and including optional renewal periods). Additions and permanent improvements to the Company's communications infrastructure are capitalized, while maintenance and repairs are expensed.
Labor and interest costs incurred directly related to the construction of certain property and equipment are capitalized during the construction phase of projects. For the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, the Company recorded $299 million, $265 million and $238 million in capitalized labor costs, respectively. The carrying value of property and equipment is reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the assets may not be recoverable.
Abandonments and write-offs of property and equipment are recorded to "Asset write-down charges" on the Company's consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive income (loss) and were $40 million, $39 million and $19 million for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, respectively.
Asset Retirement Obligations
Pursuant to its ground lease, leased facility and certain pole attachment agreements, the Company records obligations to perform asset retirement activities, including requirements to remove communications infrastructure or remediate the space on which certain of its communications infrastructure is located. The Company does not record an obligation for asset retirement activities related to its fiber, as a settlement date is indeterminable and therefore a reasonable estimation of fair value cannot be made. Asset retirement obligations are included in "Other long-term liabilities" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. The liability accretes as a result of the passage of time and the related accretion expense is included in "Depreciation, amortization and accretion" on the Company's consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive income (loss). The associated asset retirement costs are capitalized as an additional carrying amount of the related long-lived asset and depreciated over the useful life of such asset.
Goodwill
Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price for an acquired business over the allocated value of the related net assets. The Company tests goodwill for impairment on an annual basis, regardless of whether adverse events or changes in circumstances have occurred. The annual test begins with goodwill and all intangible assets being allocated to applicable reporting units. The Company's reporting units are the same as its operating segments (Towers and Fiber). The Company then performs a qualitative assessment to determine whether it is "more likely than not" that the fair value of the reporting unit is less than its carrying amount. If the Company concludes it is "more likely than not" that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, it is necessary to perform a quantitative goodwill impairment test. The quantitative goodwill impairment test compares the estimated fair value of the reporting unit and the carrying value of the reporting unit. If the carrying amount of a reporting unit is greater than its fair value, an impairment loss shall be recognized in an amount equal to such excess, limited to the total amount of goodwill allocated to the reporting unit. The Company performed its most recent annual goodwill impairment test as of October 1, 2023, which resulted in no impairments.
Intangible Assets
Intangible assets are included in "Site rental contracts and tenant relationships, net" and "Other intangible assets, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet and predominately consist of the estimated fair value of site rental contracts and tenant relationships or other contractual rights, such as trademarks, that are recorded in conjunction with acquisitions. Site rental contracts and tenant relationships intangible assets are comprised of (1) the current term of the existing leases, (2) the high rate of tenant retention, and (3) any associated relationships that are expected to generate value following the expiration of all renewal periods under existing leases.
The useful lives of intangible assets are estimated based on the period over which the intangible asset is expected to benefit the Company and gives consideration to the expected useful life of other assets to which the useful life may relate. Amortization expense for intangible assets is computed using the straight-line method over the estimated useful life of each of the intangible assets. The useful lives of site rental contracts and tenant relationships intangible assets are limited by the maximum depreciable life of the communications infrastructure (20 years), as a result of the interdependency of the communications infrastructure and the site rental contracts and tenant relationships. In contrast, the site rental contracts and tenant relationships are estimated to provide economic benefits for several decades because of the low rate of tenant cancellations and high rate of tenant retention experienced to date. Thus, while site rental contracts and tenant relationships intangible assets are valued based upon the fair value of the site rental contracts and tenant relationships, which includes assumptions regarding both (1) tenants' exercise of optional renewals contained in the acquired leases and (2) renewals of the acquired leases past the contractual term including exercisable options, site rental contracts and tenant relationships intangible assets are amortized over a period not to exceed 20 years.
The carrying value of other intangible assets with finite useful lives will be reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the assets may not be recoverable. The Company has a dual grouping policy for purposes of determining the unit of account for testing impairment of site rental contracts and tenant relationships intangible assets. First, the Company pools site rental contracts and tenant relationships intangible assets with the related communications infrastructure assets into portfolio groups for purposes of determining the unit of account for impairment testing. Second and separately, the Company pools the site rental contracts and tenant relationships by significant tenant or by tenant grouping for individually insignificant tenants, as appropriate. If the sum of the associated estimated future
cash flows (undiscounted) from an asset is less than its carrying amount, an impairment loss may be recognized. Measurement of an impairment loss would be based on the fair value of the asset.
Deferred Credits
Deferred credits are included in "Deferred revenues" and "Other long-term liabilities" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet and consist of the estimated fair value of below-market tenant leases for contractual interests with tenants on acquired communications infrastructure that are amortized to site rental revenues.
Fair value for these deferred credits represents the difference between (1) the stated contractual payments to be made pursuant to the in-place lease and (2) management's estimate of fair market lease rates for each corresponding lease. Deferred credits are measured over a period equal to the estimated remaining economic lease term considering renewal provisions or economics associated with those renewal provisions, to the extent applicable. Deferred credits are amortized over their respected estimated lease terms at the time of acquisition.
Deferred Financing Costs
Third-party costs incurred to obtain financing, with the exception of costs incurred related to revolving lines of credit, are deferred and are included as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of the related debt liability in "Debt and other long-term obligations" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet and are amortized using the effective interest yield methodology to "Interest expense and amortization of deferred financing costs, net" on the Company's consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive income (loss) over the term of the related debt liability. Third party costs incurred to obtain financing through a revolving line of credit are deferred and are included in "Other assets, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet and are amortized using the effective interest yield methodology to "Interest expense and amortization of deferred financing costs, net" on the Company's consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive income (loss) over the term of the 2016 Credit Agreement (as defined in note 7).
Revenue Recognition
The Company generates site rental revenues from its core business by providing tenants with access, including space or capacity, to its shared communications infrastructure via long-term tenant contracts in various forms, including lease, license, sublease and service agreements. Typically, providing such access over the length of the tenant contract term represents the Company’s sole performance obligation under its tenant contracts.
Site Rental Revenues. Site rental revenues from the Company's tenant contracts are recognized on a straight-line, ratable basis over the fixed, non-cancelable term of the relevant tenant contract, which generally ranges between five to 15 years for wireless tenants and between one to 20 years for fiber solutions tenants (including from organizations with high-bandwidth and multi-location demands), regardless of whether the payments from the tenant are received in equal monthly amounts during the life of the tenant contract. Certain of the Company's tenant contracts contain (1) fixed escalation clauses (such as fixed dollar or fixed percentage increases) or inflation-based escalation clauses (such as those tied to the CPI), (2) multiple renewal periods exercisable at the tenant's option and (3) only limited termination rights at the applicable tenant's option through the current term. If the payment terms call for fixed escalators, upfront payments, or rent-free periods, the revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis over the fixed, non-cancelable term of the tenant contract. When calculating straight-line rental revenues, the Company considers all fixed elements of tenant contractual escalation provisions, even if such escalation provisions contain a variable element in addition to a minimum. The Company's assets related to straight-line site rental revenues are recorded within "Current portion of deferred site rental receivables" and "Deferred site rental receivables" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. Amounts billed or received prior to being earned are deferred and reflected in "Deferred revenues" and "Other long-term liabilities" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. Amounts to which the Company has an unconditional right to payment, which are related to both satisfied or partially satisfied performance obligations, are recorded within "Receivables, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet.
Sprint Cancellation Payments. For the year ended December 31, 2023, site rental revenues include $170 million of payments in the Company's Fiber segment to satisfy the remaining rental obligations of certain canceled Sprint leases as a result of the T-Mobile US, Inc. and Sprint network consolidation. In connection with such canceled Sprint leases, the Company also recognized $59 million of accelerated prepaid rent amortization in the Company's Fiber segment for the year ended December 31, 2023.
Services and Other Revenues. As part of the Company’s effort to provide comprehensive communications infrastructure solutions, as an ancillary business, the Company offers certain services primarily relating to its Towers segment, predominately
consisting of (1) site development services and (2) installation services. See note 16 to our consolidated financial statements for a discussion of the Company's July 2023 restructuring plan, which included discontinuing installation services as a Towers product offering. Upon contract commencement, the Company assesses its services to tenants and identifies performance obligations for each promise to provide a distinct service.
The Company may have multiple performance obligations for site development services, which primarily include: structural analysis, zoning, permitting and construction drawings. For each of these performance obligations, services revenues are recognized at completion of the applicable performance obligation, which represents the point at which the Company believes it has transferred goods or services to the tenant. The services revenue recognized is based on an allocation of the transaction price among the performance obligations in a respective tenant contract based on estimated standalone selling price. The volume and mix of site development services may vary among tenant contracts and may include a combination of some or all of the above performance obligations. Amounts are billed per contractual milestones, with payments generally due within 45 to 90 days, and generally do not contain variable-consideration provisions.
The transaction price for the Company's tower installation services consists of amounts for (1) permanent improvements to the Company's towers that represent a lease component and (2) the performance of the service. Amounts under the Company's tower installation service agreements that represent a lease component are recognized as site rental revenues on a straight-line basis over the length of the associated estimated lease term. For the performance of the installation service, the Company has one performance obligation, which is satisfied at the time of the applicable installation or augmentation and recognized as services and other revenues on the Company's consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive income (loss). Since performance obligations are typically satisfied prior to receiving payment from tenants, the unconditional right to payment is recorded within "Receivables, net" on the Company’s consolidated balance sheet. Generally, the services the Company provides to its tenants have a duration of one year or less.
Additional Information on Revenues. As of January 1, 2023 and December 31, 2023, $2.3 billion and $2.1 billion of unrecognized revenues, respectively, were reported in "Deferred revenues" and "Other long-term liabilities" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. During the year ended December 31, 2023, approximately $631 million of the January 1, 2023 unrecognized revenues balance was recognized as revenues. As of January 1, 2022, $2.6 billion of unrecognized revenues were reported in "Deferred revenues" and "Other long-term liabilities" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. During the year ended December 31, 2022, approximately $668 million of the January 1, 2022 unrecognized revenues balance was recognized as revenues.
See note 3 for further discussion regarding the Company’s revenues.
Costs of Operations
Nearly half of the Company's site rental costs of operations expenses consist of Towers ground lease expenses, and the remainder includes fiber access expenses, repairs and maintenance expenses, employee compensation or related benefit costs, property taxes, or utilities. Generally, the ground leases for land are specific to each site and are for an initial term of between five to 15 years and are renewable for pre-determined periods. The Company also enters into ground leases, such as term easements, in which it prepays the entire term in advance. Fiber access expenses primarily consist of leases of fiber assets and other access agreements to facilitate the Company's communications infrastructure.
Ground lease and fiber access expenses are recognized on a ratable basis, regardless of whether the payment terms require the Company to make payments annually, semi-annually, quarterly, monthly, or for the entire term in advance. Certain of the Company's ground lease and fiber access agreements contain fixed escalation clauses (such as fixed dollar or fixed percentage increases) or inflation-based escalation clauses (such as those tied to the change in CPI). If the payment terms include fixed escalators, upfront payments, or rent-free periods, the effect of such increases is recognized on a straight-line basis. When calculating straight-line ground lease and fiber access expenses, the Company considers all fixed elements of contractual escalation provisions, even if such escalation provisions contain a variable element in addition to a minimum. The Company's liability related to straight-line expense is included in "Operating lease right-of-use assets" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. The Company's assets related to prepaid agreements is included in "Prepaid expenses" and "Operating lease right-of-use assets" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet.
Services and other costs of operations predominately consist of third-party service providers such as contractors and professional services firms and, to a lesser extent, internal labor costs, associated with the Company's site development and installation services. See note 16 to our consolidated financial statements for a discussion of the Company's July 2023 restructuring plan, which included discontinuing installation services as a Towers product offering. The Company's costs
incurred prior to the satisfaction of associated performance obligations of $44 million and $43 million as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively, are included in "Other current assets" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet.
Acquisitions and Integration Costs
Direct or incremental costs related to a potential or completed business combination transaction are expensed as incurred. Such costs are predominately comprised of severance, retention bonuses payable to employees of an acquired enterprise, temporary employees to assist with the integration of the acquired operations, fees paid for services (such as consulting, accounting, legal, or engineering reviews), and any other costs directly associated with the transaction. These business combination costs are included in "Acquisition and integration costs" on the Company's consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive income (loss). For those transactions accounted for as asset acquisitions, these costs are capitalized as part of the purchase price.
Stock-based Compensation Expense, Net
Restricted Stock Units. The Company records stock-based compensation expense for unvested restricted stock units ("RSUs") for which the requisite service is expected to be rendered. The cumulative effect of a change in the estimated number of RSUs for which the requisite service is expected to be or has been rendered is recognized in the period of the change in the estimate. To the extent that the requisite service is rendered, compensation cost for accounting purposes is not reversed; rather, it is recognized regardless of whether or not the awards vest. A discussion of the Company's valuation techniques and related assumptions and estimates used to measure the Company's stock-based compensation expense is as follows:
Valuation. The fair value of RSUs without market conditions is determined based on the number of shares relating to such RSUs and the quoted price of the Company's common stock at the date of grant. The Company estimates the fair value of RSUs with market conditions granted using a Monte Carlo simulation. The Company's determination of the fair value of RSUs with market conditions on the date of grant is affected by its common stock price as well as assumptions regarding a number of highly complex or subjective variables. The determination of fair value using a Monte Carlo simulation requires the input of subjective assumptions, and other reasonable assumptions could provide differing results.
Amortization Method. The Company amortizes the fair value of all RSUs on a straight-line basis for each separately vesting tranche of the award (graded vesting schedule) over the requisite service periods.
Expected Volatility. The Company estimates the volatility of its common stock at the date of grant based on the historical volatility of its common stock.
Expected Dividend Rate. The expected dividend rate at the date of grant is based on the then-current dividend yield.
Risk-Free Rate. The Company bases the risk-free rate on the implied yield currently available on U.S. Treasury issues with an equivalent remaining term equal to the expected life of the award.
Forfeitures. The Company uses historical award forfeiture data and management's judgment about the future employee turnover rates to estimate the number of shares for which the requisite service period will not be rendered.
Interest Expense and Amortization of Deferred Financing Costs, Net
The components of interest expense and amortization of deferred financing costs, net are as follows:
 Years Ended December 31,
 202320222021
Interest expense on debt obligations$836 $685 $644 
Amortization of deferred financing costs and adjustments on long-term debt29 26 25 
Capitalized interest(15)(12)(12)
Total$850 $699 $657 
The Company amortizes deferred financing costs, discounts and premiums over the estimated term of the related borrowing using the effective interest yield method. Deferred financing costs and discounts are generally presented as a direct reduction to the related debt obligation on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. 
Income Taxes
The Company operates as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes. As a REIT, the Company is generally entitled to a deduction for dividends that it pays and therefore is not subject to U.S. federal corporate income tax on its net taxable income that is currently distributed to its stockholders. The Company may be subject to certain federal, state, local and foreign taxes on its income, including (1) taxes on any undistributed income and (2) taxes related to the TRSs. In addition, the Company could, under certain circumstances, be required to pay an excise or penalty tax, which could be significant in amount, in order to utilize one or more relief provisions under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended ("Code"), to maintain qualification for taxation as a REIT.
Additionally, the Company has included in TRSs certain other assets and operations. Those TRS assets and operations will continue to be subject, as applicable, to federal and state corporate income taxes or to foreign taxes in the jurisdictions in which such assets and operations are located. The Company's foreign assets and operations (including its tower operations in Puerto Rico) are subject to foreign income taxes in the jurisdictions in which such assets and operations are located, regardless of whether they are included in a TRS or not. For its REIT conversion and certain subsequent acquisitions into the REIT, the Company will be subject to a federal corporate level tax rate (currently 21%) on any gain recognized from the sale of assets occurring within a specified period (generally 5 years) after the transfer date up to the amount of the built in gain that existed on the transfer date, which is based upon the fair market value of those assets in excess of the Company's tax basis on the transfer date. This gain can be offset by any remaining federal net operating loss carryforwards ("NOLs").
For the Company's TRSs, the Company accounts for income taxes using an asset and liability approach, which requires the recognition of deferred income tax assets and liabilities for the expected future tax consequences of events that have been recognized in the Company's financial statements or tax returns. Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the temporary differences between the financial statement and tax bases of assets and liabilities using enacted tax rates. A valuation allowance is provided on deferred tax assets if it is determined that it is "more likely than not" that the asset will not be realized. The Company records a valuation allowance against deferred tax assets when it is "more likely than not" that some portion or all of the deferred tax asset will not be realized. The Company reviews the recoverability of deferred tax assets each quarter and based upon projections of future taxable income, reversing deferred tax liabilities or other known events that are expected to affect future taxable income, records a valuation allowance for assets that do not meet the "more likely than not" realization threshold. Valuation allowances may be reversed if related deferred tax assets are deemed realizable based upon changes in facts and circumstances that impact the recoverability of the asset.
The Company recognizes a tax position if it is "more likely than not" that it will be sustained upon examination. The tax position is measured at the largest amount that is greater than 50 percent likely of being realized upon ultimate settlement. The Company reports penalties and tax-related interest expense as a component of the benefit (provision) for income taxes. As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company has not recorded any material penalties related to its income tax positions. See note 9.
Per Share Information
Basic net income (loss), per common share, excludes dilution and is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding during the period. For the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021, diluted net income (loss), per common share, is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding during the period, plus any potential dilutive common share equivalents, including shares issuable upon the vesting of RSUs as determined under the treasury stock method.
A reconciliation of the numerators and denominators of the basic and diluted per share computations is shown in the table below.
 Years Ended December 31,
 202320222021
Income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to CCI common stockholders for basic and diluted computations$1,502 $1,675 $1,158 
Income (loss) from discontinued operations, net of tax— — (62)
Net income (loss) attributable to CCI common stockholders$1,502 $1,675 $1,096 
Weighted-average number of common shares outstanding (in millions):
Basic weighted-average number of common stock outstanding434 433 432 
Effect of assumed dilution from potential issuance of common shares relating to RSUs— 
Diluted weighted-average number of common shares outstanding434 434 434 
Net income (loss) attributable to CCI common stockholders, per common share:
Income (loss) from continuing operations, basic$3.46 $3.87 $2.68 
Income (loss) from discontinued operations, basic— — (0.14)
Net income (loss) attributable to CCI common stockholders—basic
$3.46 $3.87 $2.54 
Income (loss) from continuing operations, diluted$3.46 $3.86 $2.67 
Income (loss) from discontinued operations, diluted— — (0.14)
Net income (loss)—diluted$3.46 $3.86 $2.53 
Dividends/distributions declared per share of common stock$6.26 $5.98 $5.46 
Fair Values
The Company's assets and liabilities recorded at fair value are categorized based upon a fair value hierarchy that ranks the quality and reliability of the information used to determine fair value. The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are (1) Level 1 — quoted prices (unadjusted) in active and accessible markets, (2) Level 2 — observable prices that are based on inputs not quoted in active markets but corroborated by market data, and (3) Level 3 — unobservable inputs and are not corroborated by market data. The Company evaluates fair value hierarchy level classifications quarterly, and transfers between levels are effective at the end of the quarterly period.
The fair values of cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash and cash equivalents approximate the carrying values. The Company determines the fair value of its debt securities based on indicative, non-binding quotes from brokers. Quotes from brokers require judgment and are based on the brokers' interpretation of market information, including implied credit spreads for similar borrowings on recent trades or bid/ask prices or quotes from active markets if available. There were no changes since December 31, 2022 in the Company's valuation techniques used to measure fair values. See note 8 for a further discussion of fair values. 
Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements
No accounting pronouncements adopted during the year ended December 31, 2023 had a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted
In November 2023, the FASB issued new guidance that is designed to improve reportable segment disclosure requirements, primarily through enhanced disclosure of significant segment expenses. The new guidance also expands interim segment disclosure requirements and requires disclosure of the position and title of the Company's chief operating decision-maker. The guidance will be effective for the Company's fiscal year ending December 31, 2024 and for interim periods starting in the first quarter of fiscal year 2025 with early adoption permitted. The guidance is required to be applied retrospectively to each prior reporting period presented. The Company is currently evaluating the effect of the guidance, including the impact on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.
In December 2023, the FASB issued new guidance that enhances the transparency and decision usefulness of income tax disclosures, primarily through changes to the rate reconciliation and income taxes paid disclosures. The guidance will be effective for the Company's fiscal year ending December 31, 2025, and can be applied prospectively or retrospectively, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the effect of the guidance, including the impact on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.