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BENEFIT PLANS:
 6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2019
Retirement Benefits, Description [Abstract]  
Benefit Plans BENEFIT PLANS

Idaho Power has a noncontributory defined benefit pension plan (pension plan) and two nonqualified defined benefit plans for certain senior management employees called the Security Plan for Senior Management Employees I and Security Plan for Senior Management Employees II (collectively, SMSP). Idaho Power also has a nonqualified defined benefit pension plan for directors that was frozen in 2002. Remaining vested benefits from that plan are included with the SMSP in the disclosures below. The benefits under the pension plan are based on years of service and the employee’s final average earnings. Idaho Power also maintains a defined benefit postretirement benefit plan (consisting of health care and death benefits) that covers all employees who were enrolled in the active-employee group plan at the time of retirement as well as their spouses and qualifying dependents. The table below shows the components of net periodic benefit costs for the pension, SMSP, and postretirement benefits plans for the three months ended June 30, 2019 and 2018 (in thousands).
 
 
Pension Plan
 
SMSP
 
Postretirement
Benefits
 
Total
 

2019

2018

2019

2018

2019

2018
 
2019
 
2018
Service cost

$
8,316


$
9,742


$
(45
)

$
(79
)

$
196


$
242

 
$
8,467

 
$
9,905

Interest cost

10,560


9,683


1,145


1,061


762


656

 
12,467

 
11,400

Expected return on plan assets

(12,187
)

(13,056
)

—


—


(557
)

(605
)
 
(12,744
)
 
(13,661
)
Amortization of prior service cost

2


2


24


25


12


12

 
38

 
39

Amortization of net loss

3,302


3,394


633


947


—


—

 
3,935

 
4,341

Net periodic benefit cost

9,993


9,765


1,757


1,954


413


305

 
12,163

 
12,024

Regulatory deferral of net periodic benefit cost(1)

(9,523
)

(9,309
)

—

 
—

 
—

 
—

 
(9,523
)
 
(9,309
)
Previously deferred pension costs recognized(1)
 
4,289

 
4,289

 
—

 
—

 
—

 
—

 
4,289

 
4,289

Net periodic benefit cost recognized for financial reporting(1)(2)

$
4,759


$
4,745


$
1,757


$
1,954


$
413


$
305

 
$
6,929

 
$
7,004

 (1) Net periodic benefit costs for the pension plan are recognized for financial reporting based upon the authorization of each regulatory jurisdiction in which Idaho Power operates. Under IPUC order, the Idaho portion of net periodic benefit cost is recorded as a regulatory asset and is recognized in the income statement as those costs are recovered through rates.
 (2) Of total net periodic benefit cost recognized for financial reporting, $4.2 million and $4.1 million, respectively, were recognized in "Other operations and maintenance" and $2.7 million and $2.9 million, respectively, were recognized in "Other expense, net" on the condensed consolidated statements of income of the companies for the three months ended June 30, 2019 and 2018.

The table below shows the components of net periodic benefit costs for the pension, SMSP, and postretirement benefits plans for the six months ended June 30, 2019 and 2018 (in thousands).
 
 
Pension Plan
 
SMSP
 
Postretirement
Benefits
 
Total
 
 
2019
 
2018
 
2019
 
2018
 
2019
 
2018
 
2019
 
2018
Service cost
 
$
17,030

 
$
19,485

 
$
(90
)
 
$
(158
)
 
$
427

 
$
526

 
$
17,367

 
$
19,853

Interest cost
 
21,156

 
19,365

 
2,288

 
2,124

 
1,494

 
1,322

 
24,938

 
22,811

Expected return on plan assets
 
(24,311
)
 
(26,111
)
 
—

 
—

 
(1,110
)
 
(1,234
)
 
(25,421
)
 
(27,345
)
Amortization of prior service cost
 
3

 
3

 
48

 
49

 
24

 
24

 
75

 
76

Amortization of net loss
 
6,782

 
6,788

 
1,266

 
1,894

 
—

 
—

 
8,048

 
8,682

Net periodic benefit cost
 
20,660

 
19,530

 
3,512

 
3,909

 
835

 
638

 
25,007

 
24,077

Regulatory deferral of net periodic benefit cost(1)
 
(19,690
)
 
(18,616
)
 
—

 
—

 
—

 
—

 
(19,690
)
 
(18,616
)
Previously deferred pension costs recognized(1)
 
8,577

 
8,577

 
—

 
—

 
—

 
—

 
8,577

 
8,577

Net periodic benefit cost recognized for financial reporting(1)(2)
 
$
9,547

 
$
9,491

 
$
3,512

 
$
3,909

 
$
835

 
$
638

 
$
13,894

 
$
14,038

 (1) Net periodic benefit costs for the pension plan are recognized for financial reporting based upon the authorization of each regulatory jurisdiction in which Idaho Power operates. Under IPUC order, the Idaho portion of net periodic benefit cost is recorded as a regulatory asset and is recognized in the income statement as those costs are recovered through rates.
 (2) Of total net periodic benefit cost recognized for financial reporting, $8.4 million and $8.2 million, respectively, were recognized in "Other operations and maintenance" and $5.5 million and $5.8 million, respectively, were recognized in "Other expense, net" on the condensed consolidated statements of income of the companies for the six months ended June 30, 2019 and 2018.

Idaho Power has no minimum contribution requirement to its defined benefit pension plan in 2019. However, during the six months ended June 30, 2019, Idaho Power made $10 million of discretionary contributions to its defined benefit pension plan, in a continued effort to balance the regulatory collection of these expenditures with the amount and timing of contributions and to mitigate the cost of being in an underfunded position. The primary impact of pension contributions is on the timing of cash flows, as the timing of cost recovery lags behind contributions.

Idaho Power also has an Employee Savings Plan that complies with Section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code and covers substantially all employees. Idaho Power matches specified percentages of employee contributions to the Employee Savings Plan.