Income Taxes	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2017
Income Taxes
Income Taxes	NOTE 6. Income Taxes The Company files income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction, and various states and foreign jurisdictions. With few exceptions, the Company is no longer subject to U.S. federal, state and local, or non-U.S. income tax examinations by tax authorities for years before 2005. The IRS has completed its field examination of the Company’s U.S. federal income tax returns for the years 2005 through 2014. The Company protested certain IRS positions within these tax years and entered into the administrative appeals process with the IRS. In December 2012, the Company received a statutory notice of deficiency for the 2006 year. The Company filed a petition in Tax Court in the first quarter of 2013 relating to the 2006 tax year. Currently, the Company is under examination by the IRS for its U.S. federal income tax returns for the years 2015, 2016, and 2017. It is anticipated that the IRS will complete its examination of the Company for 2015 by the end of the fourth quarter of 2017, for 2016 by the end of the first quarter of 2018, and for 2017 by the end of the first quarter of 2019. As of September 30, 2017, the IRS has not proposed any significant adjustments to the Company’s tax positions for which the Company is not adequately reserved. Payments relating to other proposed assessments arising from the 2005 through 2017 examinations may not be made until a final agreement is reached between the Company and the IRS on such assessments or upon a final resolution resulting from the administrative appeals process or judicial action. In addition to the U.S. federal examination, there is also audit activity in several U.S. state and foreign jurisdictions. 3M anticipates changes to the Company’s uncertain tax positions due to the closing and resolution of audit issues for various audit years mentioned above and closure of statutes. Currently, the Company is estimating a decrease in unrecognized tax benefits during the next 12 months as a result of anticipated resolutions of audit issues. The total amounts of unrecognized tax benefits that, if recognized, would affect the effective tax rate as of September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016 are $384 million and $333 million, respectively. The Company recognizes interest and penalties accrued related to unrecognized tax benefits in tax expense. The Company recognized in the consolidated statement of income on a gross basis approximately $8 million and $11 million of expense for the three months ended September 30, 2017 and September 30, 2016, respectively, and approximately $16 million and $8 million of expense for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 and September 30, 2016, respectively. At September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016, accrued interest and penalties in the consolidated balance sheet on a gross basis were $64 million and $52 million, respectively. Included in these interest and penalty amounts are interest and penalties related to tax positions for which the ultimate deductibility is highly certain but for which there is uncertainty about the timing of such deductibility. Because of the impact of deferred tax accounting, other than interest and penalties, the disallowance of the shorter deductibility period would not affect the annual effective tax rate but would accelerate the payment of cash to the taxing authority to an earlier period. The effective tax rate for the third quarter of 2017 was 28.3 percent, compared to 28.5 percent in the third quarter of 2016, a decrease of 0.2 percentage points. Primary factors that decreased the Company’s effective tax rate on a combined basis by 4.0 percentage points year-on-year included international taxes that were impacted by changes to the geographic mix of income before taxes and prior year cash optimization actions, increased benefits from the R&D tax credit, and other items. This decrease was partially offset by a 3.8 percentage point year-on-year increase to the Company’s effective tax rate. Primary factors that increased the effective tax rate included remeasurements of 3M’s uncertain tax positions and a lower year-on-year excess tax benefit related to employee share-based payments. The effective tax rate for the first nine months of 2017 was 26.1 percent, compared to 28.3 percent in the first nine months of 2016, a decrease of 2.2 percentage points. Primary factors that decreased the Company’s effective tax rate on a combined basis by 3.0 percentage points for the first nine months of 2017 when compared to the same period for 2016 included international taxes that were impacted by changes to the geographic mix of income before taxes and prior year cash optimization actions, tax benefits resulting from the held-for-sale status of certain legal entities, increased benefits from the R&D tax credit, and other items. This decrease was partially offset by a 0.8 percentage point year-on-year increase, which included remeasurements of 3M’s uncertain tax positions and a lower year-on-year excess tax benefit related to employee share-based payments. The provision for income taxes is determined using the asset and liability approach. Under this approach, deferred income taxes represent the expected future tax consequences of temporary differences between the carrying amounts and tax basis of assets and liabilities. The Company records a valuation allowance to reduce its deferred tax assets when uncertainty regarding their realizability exits. As of September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016, the Company had valuation allowances of $62 million and $47 million on its deferred tax assets, respectively.

NOTE 6. Income Taxes

The Company files income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction, and various states and foreign jurisdictions. With few exceptions, the Company is no longer subject to U.S. federal, state and local, or non-U.S. income tax examinations by tax authorities for years before 2005.

The IRS has completed its field examination of the Company’s U.S. federal income tax returns for the years 2005 through 2014. The Company protested certain IRS positions within these tax years and entered into the administrative appeals process with the IRS. In December 2012, the Company received a statutory notice of deficiency for the 2006 year. The Company filed a petition in Tax Court in the first quarter of 2013 relating to the 2006 tax year.

Currently, the Company is under examination by the IRS for its U.S. federal income tax returns for the years 2015, 2016, and 2017. It is anticipated that the IRS will complete its examination of the Company for 2015 by the end of the fourth quarter of 2017, for 2016 by the end of the first quarter of 2018, and for 2017 by the end of the first quarter of 2019. As of September 30, 2017, the IRS has not proposed any significant adjustments to the Company’s tax positions for which the Company is not adequately reserved.

Payments relating to other proposed assessments arising from the 2005 through 2017 examinations may not be made until a final agreement is reached between the Company and the IRS on such assessments or upon a final resolution resulting from the administrative appeals process or judicial action. In addition to the U.S. federal examination, there is also audit activity in several U.S. state and foreign jurisdictions.

3M anticipates changes to the Company’s uncertain tax positions due to the closing and resolution of audit issues for various audit years mentioned above and closure of statutes. Currently, the Company is estimating a decrease in unrecognized tax benefits during the next 12 months as a result of anticipated resolutions of audit issues. The total amounts of unrecognized tax benefits that, if recognized, would affect the effective tax rate as of September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016 are $384 million and $333 million, respectively.

The Company recognizes interest and penalties accrued related to unrecognized tax benefits in tax expense. The Company recognized in the consolidated statement of income on a gross basis approximately $8 million and $11 million of expense for the three months ended September 30, 2017 and September 30, 2016, respectively, and approximately $16 million and $8 million of expense for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 and September 30, 2016, respectively. At September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016, accrued interest and penalties in the consolidated balance sheet on a gross basis were $64 million and $52 million, respectively. Included in these interest and penalty amounts are interest and penalties related to tax positions for which the ultimate deductibility is highly certain but for which there is uncertainty about the timing of such deductibility. Because of the impact of deferred tax accounting, other than interest and penalties, the disallowance of the shorter deductibility period would not affect the annual effective tax rate but would accelerate the payment of cash to the taxing authority to an earlier period.

The effective tax rate for the third quarter of 2017 was 28.3 percent, compared to 28.5 percent in the third quarter of 2016, a decrease of 0.2 percentage points. Primary factors that decreased the Company’s effective tax rate on a combined basis by 4.0 percentage points year-on-year included international taxes that were impacted by changes to the geographic mix of income before taxes and prior year cash optimization actions, increased benefits from the R&D tax credit, and other items. This decrease was partially offset by a 3.8 percentage point year-on-year increase to the Company’s effective tax rate. Primary factors that increased the effective tax rate included remeasurements of 3M’s uncertain tax positions and a lower year-on-year excess tax benefit related to employee share-based payments.

The effective tax rate for the first nine months of 2017 was 26.1 percent, compared to 28.3 percent in the first nine months of 2016, a decrease of 2.2 percentage points. Primary factors that decreased the Company’s effective tax rate on a combined basis by 3.0 percentage points for the first nine months of 2017 when compared to the same period for 2016 included international taxes that were impacted by changes to the geographic mix of income before taxes and prior year cash optimization actions, tax benefits resulting from the held-for-sale status of certain legal entities, increased benefits from the R&D tax credit, and other items. This decrease was partially offset by a 0.8 percentage point year-on-year increase, which included remeasurements of 3M’s uncertain tax positions and a lower year-on-year excess tax benefit related to employee share-based payments.

The provision for income taxes is determined using the asset and liability approach. Under this approach, deferred income taxes represent the expected future tax consequences of temporary differences between the carrying amounts and tax basis of assets and liabilities. The Company records a valuation allowance to reduce its deferred tax assets when uncertainty regarding their realizability exits. As of September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016, the Company had valuation allowances of $62 million and $47 million on its deferred tax assets, respectively.