Income Taxes	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2019
Income Taxes [Abstract]
Income Taxes	Note 16 – Income Taxes During the nine months ended September 30, 2019, the Company’s Federal net operating loss (“NOL”) carryforward increased by $12,892. In addition, during the nine months ended September 30, 2019, the Company’s state NOL carryforward increased by $80,966. As of September 30, 2019, the balance of the Company’s Federal NOL was $23,727. The Company believes its Federal NOL carryforward is more likely than not to be recovered and requires no valuation allowance. As of September 30, 2019, the balance of the Company’s gross state NOL was $731,252, a portion of which is offset by a valuation allowance because the Company does not believe the state NOLs are more likely than not to be realized. The Company’s Federal and state NOL carryforwards begin to expire in 2032 and 2023, respectively. The Company’s Federal and state NOL carryforwards are reduced by an unrecognized tax position, on a gross basis, of $68,923 and $85,645, respectively. The amounts of the Company’s Federal and state NOL carryforwards prior to being reduced by the unrecognized tax positions were $92,650 and $816,897 respectively. The Company records its unrecognized tax benefit as a decrease to its deferred income tax asset, which is netted against the deferred income tax liability. As of September 30, 2019, the total gross unrecognized tax benefit was $17,383. As a result of the regulatory treatment afforded for qualifying infrastructure improvements in Pennsylvania, $28,886, if recognized, would affect the Company’s effective tax rate. At December 31, 2018, the Company had unrecognized tax benefits of $17,792. Accounting rules for uncertain tax positions specify that tax positions for which the timing of resolution is uncertain should be classified as long-term liabilities. Judgment is required in evaluating the Company’s uncertain tax positions and determining the provision for income taxes. Management believes that an adequate provision has been made for any adjustments that may result from tax examinations. Although the timing of income tax audit resolutions and negotiations with taxing authorities is highly uncertain, the Company does not anticipate a significant change to the total amount of unrecognized income tax benefits within the next 12 months. As of December 31, 2017, the Company had provisionally estimated that $175,108 of deferred income tax liabilities for our Pennsylvania subsidiary, Aqua Pennsylvania, will be a regulatory liability as a result of the accounting effect of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Acts (the “TCJA”). In May 2018, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (“PA PUC”) issued an order that set forth the requirements for utilities to either immediately initiate the refund or otherwise address the impacts of the TCJA in the utilities’ next rate case. Aqua Pennsylvania filed a base rate case in August 2018, during which it expected the PA PUC to address the effects of the TCJA within the base rate case filing. Additionally, the PA PUC ordered that all rates charged by utilities, including those billed by Aqua Pennsylvania since January 1, 2018, are temporary and subject to refund pending the outcome of its review of the effects of the TCJA within the next base rate case. In February 2019, Aqua Pennsylvania filed a settlement for this base rate case, and on March 11, 2019, the administrative law judges issued a recommended decision approving the settlement on March 11, 2019. In May 2019 a final order was issued from the PA PUC affirming the Company’s regulatory liability of $175,108 and authorizing the Company to implement an average rate assumption method to reduce the regulatory liability over the remaining book lives beginning in June 2019 to reflect the fact that the benefit from the excess accumulated deferred taxes is now reflected in base rates. The Company’s accounting for income taxes on regulated operations is impacted by the FASB’s accounting guidance for regulated operations. Reductions in accumulated deferred income tax balances due to the reduction in the Federal corporate income tax rates to 21% under the provisions of the TCJA will result in amounts previously collected from utility customers for these deferred taxes to be refundable to such customers, generally through reductions in future rates. The TCJA includes provisions that stipulate how these excess deferred taxes related to certain accelerated tax depreciation deduction benefits are to be passed back to customers. Our state regulatory commissions have or are in the process of issuing procedural orders directing how the tax law changes are to be reflected in our utility customer rates.

Income Taxes

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2019

Note 16 – Income Taxes

During the nine months ended September 30, 2019, the Company’s Federal net operating loss (“NOL”) carryforward increased by $12,892. In addition, during the nine months ended September 30, 2019, the Company’s state NOL carryforward increased by $80,966. As of September 30, 2019, the balance of the Company’s Federal NOL was $23,727. The Company believes its Federal NOL carryforward is more likely than not to be recovered and requires no valuation allowance. As of September 30, 2019, the balance of the Company’s gross state NOL was $731,252, a portion of which is offset by a valuation allowance because the Company does not believe the state NOLs are more likely than not to be realized. The Company’s Federal and state NOL carryforwards begin to expire in 2032 and 2023, respectively. The Company’s Federal and state NOL carryforwards are reduced by an unrecognized tax position, on a gross basis, of $68,923 and $85,645, respectively. The amounts of the Company’s Federal and state NOL carryforwards prior to being reduced by the unrecognized tax positions were $92,650 and $816,897 respectively. The Company records its unrecognized tax benefit as a decrease to its deferred income tax asset, which is netted against the deferred income tax liability.

As of September 30, 2019, the total gross unrecognized tax benefit was $17,383. As a result of the regulatory treatment afforded for qualifying infrastructure improvements in Pennsylvania, $28,886, if recognized, would affect the Company’s effective tax rate. At December 31, 2018, the Company had unrecognized tax benefits of $17,792.

Accounting rules for uncertain tax positions specify that tax positions for which the timing of resolution is uncertain should be classified as long-term liabilities. Judgment is required in evaluating the

Company’s uncertain tax positions and determining the provision for income taxes. Management believes that an adequate provision has been made for any adjustments that may result from tax examinations. Although the timing of income tax audit resolutions and negotiations with taxing authorities is highly uncertain, the Company does not anticipate a significant change to the total amount of unrecognized income tax benefits within the next 12 months.

As of December 31, 2017, the Company had provisionally estimated that $175,108 of deferred income tax liabilities for our Pennsylvania subsidiary, Aqua Pennsylvania, will be a regulatory liability as a result of the accounting effect of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Acts (the “TCJA”). In May 2018, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (“PA PUC”) issued an order that set forth the requirements for utilities to either immediately initiate the refund or otherwise address the impacts of the TCJA in the utilities’ next rate case. Aqua Pennsylvania filed a base rate case in August 2018, during which it expected the PA PUC to address the effects of the TCJA within the base rate case filing. Additionally, the PA PUC ordered that all rates charged by utilities, including those billed by Aqua Pennsylvania since January 1, 2018, are temporary and subject to refund pending the outcome of its review of the effects of the TCJA within the next base rate case. In February 2019, Aqua Pennsylvania filed a settlement for this base rate case, and on March 11, 2019, the administrative law judges issued a recommended decision approving the settlement on March 11, 2019. In May 2019 a final order was issued from the PA PUC affirming the Company’s regulatory liability of $175,108 and authorizing the Company to implement an average rate assumption method to reduce the regulatory liability over the remaining book lives beginning in June 2019 to reflect the fact that the benefit from the excess accumulated deferred taxes is now reflected in base rates.

The Company’s accounting for income taxes on regulated operations is impacted by the FASB’s accounting guidance for regulated operations. Reductions in accumulated deferred income tax balances due to the reduction in the Federal corporate income tax rates to 21% under the provisions of the TCJA will result in amounts previously collected from utility customers for these deferred taxes to be refundable to such customers, generally through reductions in future rates. The TCJA includes provisions that stipulate how these excess deferred taxes related to certain accelerated tax depreciation deduction benefits are to be passed back to customers. Our state regulatory commissions have or are in the process of issuing procedural orders directing how the tax law changes are to be reflected in our utility customer rates.