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Income Taxes
6 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2020
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Taxes

NOTE 4: Income Taxes

The Company’s provision for income taxes differs from the statutory rate primarily due to estimated federal and state benefits generated from excess federal and Oklahoma percentage depletion, which are permanent tax benefits. Excess percentage depletion, both federal and Oklahoma, can only be taken in the amount that it exceeds cost depletion which is calculated on a unit-of-production basis. Excess tax benefits and deficiencies of stock-based compensation are recognized as provision (benefit) for income taxes in the Company’s Statements of Operations.

Both excess federal percentage depletion, which is limited to certain production volumes and by certain income levels, and excess Oklahoma percentage depletion, which has no limitation on production volume, reduce estimated taxable income or add to estimated taxable loss projected for any year. The federal and Oklahoma excess percentage depletion estimates will be updated throughout the year until finalized with detailed well-by-well calculations at fiscal year-end. Federal and Oklahoma excess percentage depletion, when a provision for income taxes is expected for the year, decreases the effective tax rate, while the effect is to increase the effective tax rate when a benefit for income taxes is expected for the year. The benefits of federal and Oklahoma excess percentage depletion and excess tax benefits and deficiencies of stock-based compensation are not directly related to the amount of pre-tax income (loss) recorded in a period. Accordingly, in periods where a recorded pre-tax income or loss is relatively small, the proportional effect of these items on the effective tax rate may be significant. The effective tax rate for the six months ended March 31, 2020, was a 26% benefit as compared a 24% provision for the six months ended March 31, 2019. The effective tax rate for the quarter ended March 31, 2020, was a 25% benefit as compared to a 6% benefit for the quarter ended March 31, 2019.

The federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) was enacted on March 27, 2020. The CARES Act provides relief to corporate taxpayers by permitting a five-year carryback of 2018-2020 Net Operating Losses (“NOLs”), removing the 80% limitation on the carryback of those NOLs, increasing the Section 163(j) 30% limitation on interest expense deductibility to 50% of adjusted taxable income for 2019 and 2020, and accelerates refunds for minimum tax credit carryforwards, along with a few other provisions. During the quarter ended March 31, 2020, the receipt of the refundable tax credit due to AMT credits totaling $1.4 million was accelerated due to the CARES Act. In addition to the acceleration of the AMT refund, an additional $203 thousand was recognized as an income tax benefit as a result of the NOL carryback provision allowing the Company to use the previously enacted tax rate of 34% rather than the current tax rate of 21%.