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Income Taxes
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2011
Income Taxes
Note 15.  Income Taxes

     We estimate the effective tax rate expected to be applicable for the full fiscal year and use that rate to provide for income taxes in interim reporting periods.  We also recognize the tax impact of certain discrete (unusual or infrequently occurring) items, including changes in judgment about valuation allowances and effects of changes in tax laws or rates, in the interim period in which they occur.  During the third quarter of 2010, we reorganized our business operations in Brazil, resulting in the reversal of $16 of valuation allowances that had been recorded against certain deferred tax assets.

     We reported income tax expense (benefit) of $29 and $(4) for the quarters ended September 30, 2011 and 2010 and $91 and $10 for the respective nine-month periods.  The income tax rate varies from the U.S. federal statutory rate of 35% due to valuation allowances in several countries, the 2010 adjustment of valuation allowances in Brazil, nondeductible expenses, different statutory tax rates outside the U.S. and withholding taxes related to repatriations of international earnings to the U.S.

     We record interest income or expense, as well as penalties, related to uncertain tax positions as a component of income tax expense or benefit.  Net interest expense for the periods presented herein is not significant.
 
     We have generally not recognized tax benefits on losses generated in several countries, including the U.S., where the recent history of operating losses does not allow us to satisfy the “more likely than not” criterion for the recognition of deferred tax assets.  Consequently, there is no income tax benefit recognized on the pre-tax losses in these jurisdictions as valuation allowances are established offsetting the associated tax benefit.

     The tax expense or benefit recorded is generally determined without regard to other categories of earnings, such as OCI.  An exception occurs if there is aggregate pre-tax income from other categories and a pre-tax loss from continuing operations, where a valuation allowance has been established against deferred tax assets.  The tax benefit allocated to continuing operations is the amount by which the loss from continuing operations reduces the tax expense recorded with respect to the other categories of earnings.  This exception resulted in a third quarter 2010 charge of $14 to OCI.  An offsetting income tax benefit was attributed to operations for the three months and nine months ended September 30, 2010.  The benefit recorded in operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2010 was limited to $7 due to interperiod tax allocation rules, leaving a liability of $7 in current liabilities at September 30, 2010.  This exception was not applicable in the third quarter of 2011.

     We provide for U.S. federal income and non-U.S. withholding taxes on the earnings of our non-U.S. operations that are not considered to be permanently reinvested.  Accordingly, we continue to analyze and adjust the estimated tax impact of the income and non-U.S. withholding liabilities based on the amount and source of these earnings.  We recognized expense of $1 and a benefit of $(1) for the quarters ended September 30, 2011 and 2010 and expense of $1 and $2 for the respective nine-month periods.