7.	INCOME TAXES

The provision (benefit) for income taxes consisted of the following:

	(In thousands)
	Fiscal		Fiscal		Fiscal
	2018		2017		2016
Current	$	55,039	$	54,422	$	32,806
Deferred		676		1,358		(1,299	)
Total	$	55,715	$	55,780	$	31,507

Deferred taxes are recorded to give recognition to temporary differences between the tax bases of assets or liabilities and their reported amounts in the financial statements. Valuation allowances are established to reduce the carrying amounts of deferred tax assets when it is deemed more likely than

not

that the benefit of deferred tax assets will

not

be realized. Deferred tax assets and liabilities as of

April 28, 2018

and

April 29, 2017

consisted of the following:

	(In thousands)
	2018		2017
Deferred tax assets:
Accrued expenses and other	$	2,900	$	4,740
Inventory and amortizable assets		331		538
Total deferred tax assets		3,231		5,278
Deferred tax liabilities:
Property		14,858		15,157
Intangibles and other		2,875		2,208
Total deferred tax liabilities		17,733		17,365
Net deferred tax liabilities	$	14,502	$	12,087

The reconciliation of the statutory federal income tax rate to our effective tax rate is as follows:

	Fiscal			Fiscal			Fiscal
	2018			2017			2016
Statutory federal income tax rate		30.4	%		35.0	%		35.0	%
State income taxes, net of federal benefit		2.4			2.2			2.2
Domestic manufacturing deduction benefit		(2.4	)		(3.0	)		(3.0	)
Remeasurement of deferred taxes		(2.9	)		-			-
Other differences		(.4	)		.1			(.2	)
Effective income tax rate		27.1	%		34.3	%		34.0	%

As of

April 28, 2018,

the gross amount of unrecognized tax benefits was

$1.7

million and

$191

thousand was recognized as a tax expense in Fiscal

2018.

If we were to prevail on all uncertain tax positions, the net effect would be to reduce our tax expense by approximately

$1.4

million. A reconciliation of the changes in the gross amount of unrecognized tax benefits, which amounts are included in other liabilities in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets, is as follows:

	(In thousands)
	Fiscal			Fiscal			Fiscal
	2018			2017			2016
Beginning balance	$	1,743		$	1,678		$	1,801
Increases due to current period tax positions		204			150			145
Decreases due to lapse of statute of limitations and audit resolutions		(214	)		(85	)		(268	)
Ending balance	$	1,733		$	1,743		$	1,678

We recognize accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits in income tax expense. As of

April 28, 2018,

unrecognized tax benefits included accrued interest of

$238

thousand.

December 22, 2017,

the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Tax Act”) was enacted into law. The Tax Act makes changes to the U.S. tax code, including reducing the U.S. federal tax rate from

35%

21%

effective

January 1, 2018.

The phasing in of the lower corporate income tax rate results in a blended federal statutory rate of

30.4%

for our fiscal

2018,

compared with the previous

35%

rate. The federal statutory tax rate will be reduced to

21%

in subsequent fiscal years. Included in the effective tax rate for Fiscal

2018

is a

one

-time adjustment reducing income tax expense to remeasure previous deferred tax liabilities of

$4.3

million.

We file annual income tax returns in the United States and in various state and local jurisdictions. A number of years

may

elapse before an uncertain tax position, for which we have unrecognized tax benefits, is resolved. While it is often difficult to predict the final outcome or the timing of resolution of any particular uncertain tax position, we believe that our unrecognized tax benefits reflect the most probable outcome. We adjust these unrecognized tax benefits, as well as the related interest, in light of changing facts and circumstances. The resolution of any particular uncertain tax position could require the use of cash and an adjustment to our provision for income taxes in the period of resolution. Federal income tax returns for fiscal years subsequent to

2015

are subject to examination. Generally, the income tax returns for the various state jurisdictions are subject to examination for fiscal years ending after fiscal

2011.