On December 22, 2017, the President signed into law H.R.1 (P.L. 115-97), originally known as the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (the “Tax Act”). The Tax Act significantly revised the U.S. tax code by, among other items, reducing the federal corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%, providing for the full expensing of certain depreciable property, eliminating the corporate alternative minimum tax, limiting the deductibility of interest expense, further limiting the deductibility of certain executive compensation, limiting the use of net operating loss carryforwards created in tax years beginning after December 31, 2017, and implementing a territorial tax system imposing a deemed repatriation transition tax (“Transition Tax”) on earnings of foreign subsidiaries.

Generally accepted accounting principles require companies to record the impact of the Tax Act in their financial statements for the period during which the Tax Act becomes law, even if provisions of the Tax Act become effective at a future date. The SEC staff issued Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118 (SAB 118), Income Tax Accounting Implications of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which provided guidance on accounting for the effects and included a measurement period that ends when a company has obtained, prepared and analyzed the information necessary to finalize its accounting of the Tax Act which cannot extend beyond one year. In accordance with SAB 118, a company must reflect the income tax effects of those aspects of the Tax Act for which the accounting under ASC 740, Income Taxes, is complete. To the extent that a company’s accounting for certain income tax effects of the Tax Act is incomplete, but it is able to determine a reasonable estimate, it must record a provisional estimate in the financial statements. If a company cannot determine a provisional estimate to be included in the financial statements, it should continue to apply ASC 740 on the basis of the provisions of the tax laws that were in effect immediately before the enactment of the Tax Act.

In accordance with SAB 118, the Company recorded a final adjustment for the income tax effects of the Tax Act in the fourth quarter of 2018 totaling a net tax benefit of $2.0 million, primarily related to the re-measurement of our U.S. deferred tax assets and liabilities to the lower enacted corporate tax rate as a result of the release of additional regulatory guidance and the completion and filing of the 2017 federal and state income tax returns during calendar year 2018. The Company recorded provisional estimates of the income tax effects of the Tax Act in the fourth quarter of 2017 totaling a net tax benefit of $122.1 million, primarily related to the re-measurement of our U.S. deferred tax assets and liabilities to the lower enacted corporate tax rate for $128.0 million offset by a reduction in the domestic manufacturers deduction for $5.1 million, the Transition Tax and other current year tax reform impacts of $0.8 million.

The following is an analysis of the components of the consolidated income tax provision (dollars in millions):

	Year Ended December 31,
	2018		2017			2016
Current income tax provision (benefit) -
U.S. federal	$	150.7	$	209.3		$	213.6
State and local		42.9		34.9			29.1
Foreign		0.2		0.3			0.2
Total current provision for taxes		193.8		244.5			242.9
Deferred -
U.S. federal		34.7		(90.2	)		(1.2	)
State and local		4.0		5.7			(3.0	)
Foreign		—		—			0.2
Total deferred provision (benefit) for taxes		38.7		(84.5	)		(4.0	)
Total provision for taxes	$	232.5	$	160.0		$	238.9

The effective tax rate varies from the U.S. federal statutory tax rate principally due to the following (dollars in millions):

	2018			2017			2016
Provision computed at U.S. federal statutory rate (a)	$	203.8		$	290.0		$	241.0
Federal tax reform		(2.0	)		(127.2	)		—
State and local taxes, net of federal benefit		36.9			24.0			19.8
Domestic manufacturers deduction (b)		—			(21.1	)		(21.1	)
Other		(6.2	)		(5.7	)		(0.8	)
Total	$	232.5		$	160.0		$	238.9

(a)	U.S. federal statutory rate of 21% in 2018 and 35% in 2017 and 2016.

(b)	The domestic manufacturers deduction was eliminated after 2017 as a result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

The following details the scheduled expiration dates of our tax effected net operating loss (NOL) and other tax carryforwards at December 31, 2018 (dollars in millions):

	2019 Through 2028		2029 Through 2038		Indefinite		Total
U.S. federal NOLs	$	28.6	$	3.8	$	—	$	32.4
State taxing jurisdiction NOLs		1.8		0.2		—		2.0
U.S. federal tax credit carryforwards		—		0.1		—		0.1
U.S. federal and non-U.S. capital loss carryforwards		3.1		—		0.1		3.2
Total	$	33.5	$	4.1	$	0.1	$	37.7

Deferred income taxes reflect the net tax effects of temporary differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities for financial reporting purposes and the amounts for income tax purposes. Deferred income tax assets and liabilities at December 31 are summarized as follows (dollars in millions):

	December 31,
	2018			2017
Deferred tax assets:
Accrued liabilities	$	17.1		$	13.7
Employee benefits and compensation		37.7			21.1
Inventories		12.6			15.4
Net operating loss carryforwards		34.4			38.1
Restricted stock and performance units		10.2			9.0
Pension and postretirement benefits		87.4			90.6
Derivatives		4.7			6.1
Capital loss and general business credit carryforwards		3.3			3.2
Gross deferred tax assets		207.4			197.2
Valuation allowance (c)		(3.1	)		(3.1	)
Net deferred tax assets	$	204.3		$	194.1
Deferred tax liabilities:
Property, plant and equipment	$	(422.3	)	$	(368.6	)
Goodwill and intangible assets		(67.2	)		(65.0	)
Total deferred tax liabilities	$	(489.5	)	$	(433.6	)
Net deferred tax liabilities (d)	$	(285.2	)	$	(239.5	)

(c)

Deferred tax assets are reduced by a valuation allowance when it is more likely than not that some portion of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. Both the 2018 and 2017 valuation allowance relates to capital losses. We do not expect to generate capital gains before the capital losses expire. If or when recognized, the tax benefits relating to the reversal of any or all of the valuation allowance would be recognized as a benefit to income tax expense.

(d)

As of December 31, 2018, we did not recognize U.S. deferred income taxes on our cumulative total of undistributed foreign earnings for our foreign subsidiaries. We indefinitely reinvest our earnings in operations outside the United States. It is not practicable to determine the amount of unrecognized deferred tax liability on these undistributed earnings because the actual tax liability, if any, is dependent on circumstances existing when the repatriation occurs.

Cash payments for federal, state, and foreign income taxes were $140.8 million, $298.7 million, and $222.1 million for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2017, and 2016, respectively.

The following table summarizes the changes related to PCA’s gross unrecognized tax benefits excluding interest and penalties (dollars in millions):

	2018			2017				2016
Balance as of January 1	$	(4.8	)	$	(5.2	)	$	(5.8	)
Increases related to prior years’ tax positions		(0.1	)		—			—
Increases related to current year tax positions		(0.3	)		(0.4	)		(0.5	)
Decreases related to prior years' tax positions		—			—			0.1
Settlements with taxing authorities		—			—			0.3
Expiration of the statute of limitations		0.6			0.8			0.7
Balance at December 31	$	(4.6	)	$	(4.8	)	$	(5.2	)

At December 31, 2018, PCA had recorded a $4.6 million gross reserve for unrecognized tax benefits, excluding interest and penalties. Of the total, $4.0 million (net of the federal benefit for state taxes) would impact the effective tax rate if recognized.

PCA recognizes interest accrued related to unrecognized tax benefits and penalties as income tax expense. For both years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, we had $1.1 million of interest and penalties recorded for unrecognized tax benefits. During the next 12 months, it is possible that PCA's unrecognized tax benefits related to state apportionment issues could decrease by approximately $3.1 million due to settlements with state taxing authorities.

PCA is subject to taxation in the United States, various state and local, and foreign jurisdictions. A federal examination of the 2013 tax year was concluded in November 2016. The tax years 2015 - 2018 remain open to federal examination. The tax years 2014 - 2018 remain open to state examinations. Some foreign tax jurisdictions are open to examination for the 2009 tax year forward. Through the Boise acquisition, PCA recorded net operating losses and credit carryforwards from 2008 through 2011 and 2013 that are subject to examinations and adjustments for at least three years following the year in which utilized.