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SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES:
6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2019
Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
 
This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q is a combined report of IDACORP, Inc. (IDACORP) and Idaho Power Company (Idaho Power). Therefore, these Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements apply to both IDACORP and Idaho Power.  However, Idaho Power makes no representation as to the information relating to IDACORP’s other operations.

Nature of Business
 
IDACORP is a holding company formed in 1998 whose principal operating subsidiary is Idaho Power. Idaho Power is an electric utility engaged in the generation, transmission, distribution, sale, and purchase of electric energy and capacity with a service area covering approximately 24,000 square miles in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon. Idaho Power is regulated primarily by the state utility regulatory commissions of Idaho and Oregon and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Idaho Power is the parent of Idaho Energy Resources Co. (IERCo), a joint venturer in Bridger Coal Company (BCC), which mines and supplies coal to the Jim Bridger generating plant owned in part by Idaho Power (Jim Bridger plant).
 
IDACORP’s significant other wholly-owned subsidiaries include IDACORP Financial Services, Inc. (IFS), an investor in affordable housing and other real estate investments, and Ida-West Energy Company (Ida-West), an operator of small hydropower generation projects that satisfy the requirements of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA).

Regulation of Utility Operations
 
As a regulated utility, many of Idaho Power's fundamental business decisions are subject to the approval of governmental agencies, including the prices that Idaho Power is authorized to charge for its electric service. These approvals are a critical factor in determining IDACORP's and Idaho Power's results of operations and financial condition.

IDACORP's and Idaho Power's financial statements reflect the effects of the different ratemaking principles followed by the jurisdictions regulating Idaho Power. The application of accounting principles related to regulated operations sometimes results in Idaho Power recording expenses and revenues in a different period than when an unregulated enterprise would record such expenses and revenues. In these instances, the amounts are deferred or accrued as regulatory assets or regulatory liabilities on the balance sheet. Regulatory assets represent incurred costs that have been deferred because it is probable they will be recovered from customers through future rates. Regulatory liabilities represent obligations to make refunds to customers for previous collections, or represent amounts collected in advance of incurring an expense. The effects of applying these regulatory accounting principles to Idaho Power's operations are discussed in more detail in Note 3 - "Regulatory Matters."

Financial Statements
 
In the opinion of management of IDACORP and Idaho Power, the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements contain all adjustments necessary to present fairly each company's consolidated financial position as of June 30, 2019, consolidated results of operations for the three and six months ended June 30, 2019 and 2018, and consolidated cash flows for the six months ended June 30, 2019 and 2018. These adjustments are of a normal and recurring nature. These financial statements do not contain the complete detail or note disclosures concerning accounting policies and other matters that would be included in full-year financial statements and should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements included in IDACORP’s and Idaho Power’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018 (2018 Annual Report). The results of operations for the interim period are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the full year. A change in management's estimates or assumptions could have a material impact on IDACORP's or Idaho Power's respective financial condition and results of operations during the period in which such change occurred.
 
Management Estimates
 
Management makes estimates and assumptions when preparing financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles. These estimates and assumptions include those related to rate regulation, retirement benefits, contingencies, asset impairment, income taxes, unbilled revenues, and bad debt. These estimates and assumptions affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. These estimates involve judgments
with respect to, among other things, future economic factors that are difficult to predict and are beyond management's control. Accordingly, actual results could differ from those estimates.

New and Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

In February 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842), intended to improve financial reporting on leasing transactions. The ASU requires lessees to recognize a right-of-use asset and lease liability on the balance sheet for most leases. In addition, the ASU revises the definition of a lease in regards to when an arrangement conveys the right to control the use of the identified asset under the arrangement. IDACORP and Idaho Power adopted ASU 2016-02 on January 1, 2019. The adoption did not have a material impact on their respective financial statements. Neither IDACORP nor Idaho Power has material agreements that meet the definition of a lease under ASU 2016-02.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-15, Intangibles—Goodwill and Other—Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350-40): Customer’s Accounting for Implementation Costs Incurred in a Cloud Computing Arrangement That Is a Service Contract,
to provide guidance on implementation costs incurred in a cloud computing arrangement that is a service contract. ASU 2018-15 aligns the accounting for such costs with the guidance on capitalizing costs associated with developing or obtaining internal-use software. The new standard is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2019, with early adoption permitted. IDACORP and Idaho Power are evaluating the impact of ASU 2018-15 on their respective financial statements.