INCOME TAXES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

Components of Income Tax Expense (Benefit)

Income tax expense (benefit) is comprised of the following components (in thousands):

	For the Years Ended December 31,
	2020			2019			2018
Current income tax expense (benefit)
Federal	$	(1,928	)	$	5,324		$	10,481
State		1,369			3,677			2,308
		(559	)		9,001			12,789
Deferred income tax expense (benefit)
Federal		3,878			(489	)		(3,422	)
State		1,067			(673	)		(1,014	)
		4,945			(1,162	)		(4,436	)
Income tax expense	$	4,386		$	7,839		$	8,353

Components of Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities

Significant components of CoreCivic's deferred tax assets and liabilities as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, are as follows (in thousands):

	December 31,
	2020			2019
Noncurrent deferred tax assets:
Asset reserves and liabilities not yet deductible for tax	$	21,482		$	28,247
Tax over book basis of certain assets		1,001			1,451
Net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards		3,782			5,130
Intangible contract value		699			262
Other		68			103
Total noncurrent deferred tax assets		27,032			35,193
Less valuation allowance		(848	)		(3,865	)
Total noncurrent deferred tax assets		26,184			31,328
Noncurrent deferred tax liabilities:
Book over tax basis of certain assets		(11,305	)		(11,478	)
Intangible value		(2,149	)		(2,264	)
Other		(1,617	)		(1,528	)
Total noncurrent deferred tax liabilities		(15,071	)		(15,270	)
Net total noncurrent deferred tax assets	$	11,113		$	16,058

Reconciliation of Income Tax Provision at Statutory Income Tax Rate and Effective Tax Rate

A reconciliation of the income tax provision at the statutory income tax rate and the effective tax rate as a percentage of income from continuing operations before income taxes for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019, and 2018 is as follows:

	2020			2019			2018
Statutory federal rate		21.0	%		21.0	%		21.0	%
Dividends paid deduction		(24.9	)		(18.9	)		(18.6	)
State taxes, net of federal tax benefit		1.9			1.2			1.0
Permanent differences		2.2			1.2			1.0
Charges associated with adoption of tax reform		—			—			0.6
Deferred tax expense on Kansas lease structure		5.2			—			—
Tax benefit of equity-based compensation		1.1			0.1			0.5
Other items, net		0.8			(0.6	)		(0.5	)
		7.3	%		4.0	%		5.0	%