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New Accounting Standards (All Registrants)
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2018
New Accounting Pronouncements and Changes in Accounting Principles [Abstract]  
New Accounting Pronouncements and Changes in Accounting Principles [Text Block]
New Accounting Standards (All Registrants)
New Accounting Standards Adopted: In 2018, the Registrants have adopted the following new authoritative accounting guidance issued by the FASB.
Reclassification of Certain Tax Effects from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Issued February 2018): Provides an election for a reclassification from AOCI to Retained earnings to eliminate the stranded tax effects resulting from the TCJA. This standard is effective January 1, 2019, with early adoption permitted, and may be applied either in the period of adoption or retrospective to each period in which the effects of the TCJA were recognized. Exelon early adopted this standard during the first quarter 2018 and elected to apply the guidance retrospectively as of December 31, 2017, which resulted in an increase to Exelon’s Retained earnings and Accumulated other comprehensive loss of $539 million related to deferred income taxes associated with Exelon’s pension and OPEB obligations. There was no impact for Generation or the Utility Registrants.
See Note 1Significant Accounting Policies of the Exelon 2017 Form 10-K for information on other new accounting standards issued and adopted as of January 1, 2018.
Description of New Accounting Pronouncements Not yet Adopted [Text Block]
New Accounting Standards Issued and Not Yet Adopted as of September 30, 2018: The following new authoritative accounting guidance issued by the FASB has not yet been adopted and reflected by the Registrants in their consolidated financial statements as of September 30, 2018. Unless otherwise indicated, the Registrants are currently assessing the impacts such guidance may have (which could be material) on their Consolidated Balance Sheets, Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Income, Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows and disclosures, as well as the potential to early adopt where applicable. The Registrants have assessed other FASB issuances of new standards which are not listed below given the current expectation that such standards will not significantly impact the Registrants' financial reporting.
Leases (Issued February 2016): Increases transparency and comparability among organizations by recognizing lease assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet and disclosing key information about leasing arrangements. The standard is effective January 1, 2019. Early adoption is permitted; however, the Registrants will not early adopt the standard. The issued guidance required a modified retrospective transition approach, which requires lessees and lessors to recognize and measure leases at the beginning of the earliest period presented (January 1, 2017). In July 2018, the FASB issued an amendment to the standard giving entities the option to apply the requirements of the standard in the period of adoption (January 1, 2019) with no restatement of prior periods. Exelon will elect this expedient.
The new guidance requires lessees to recognize both the right-of-use assets and lease liabilities in the balance sheet for most leases, whereas today only finance lease liabilities (referred to as capital leases) are recognized in the balance sheet. In addition, the definition of a lease has been revised which may result in changes to the classification of an arrangement as a lease. Under the new guidance, an arrangement that conveys the right to control the use of an identified asset by obtaining substantially all of its economic benefits and directing how it is used is a lease, whereas the current definition focuses on the ability to control the use of the asset or to obtain its output. Quantitative and qualitative disclosures related to the amount, timing and judgments of an entity’s accounting for leases and the related cash flows are expanded. Disclosure requirements apply to both lessees and lessors, whereas current disclosures relate only to lessees. Significant changes to lease systems, processes and procedures are required to implement the requirements of the new standard. The recognition, measurement, and presentation of expenses and cash flows arising from a lease by a lessee have not significantly changed from current GAAP. Lessor accounting is also largely unchanged.
The standard provides a number of transition practical expedients that entities may elect. These include a "package of three" expedients that must be taken together and allow entities to (1) not reassess whether existing contracts contain leases, (2) carryforward the existing lease classification, and (3) not reassess initial direct costs associated with existing leases. The Registrants will elect this practical expedient.
In January 2018, the FASB issued additional guidance which provides another optional transition practical expedient. This practical expedient allows entities to not evaluate land easements under the new guidance at adoption if they were not previously accounted for as leases. The Registrants will elect this practical expedient.
The Registrants have assessed the lease standard and are executing a detailed implementation plan in preparation for adoption on January 1, 2019. Key activities in the implementation plan include:
Developing a complete lease inventory and abstracting the required data attributes into a lease accounting system that supports the Registrants' lease portfolios and integrates with existing systems.
Evaluating the transition practical expedients available under the guidance.
Identifying, assessing and documenting technical accounting issues, policy considerations and financial reporting implications.
Identifying and implementing changes to processes and controls to ensure all impacts of the new guidance are effectively addressed.
Impairment of Financial Instruments (Issued June 2016): Provides for a new Current Expected Credit Loss (CECL) impairment model for specified financial instruments including loans, trade receivables, debt securities classified as held-to-maturity investments and net investments in leases recognized by a lessor. Under the new guidance, on initial recognition and at each reporting period, an entity is required to recognize an allowance that reflects the entity’s current estimate of credit losses expected to be incurred over the life of the financial instrument. The standard does not make changes to the existing impairment models for non-financial assets such as fixed assets, intangibles and goodwill. The standard will be effective January 1, 2020 (with early adoption as of January 1, 2019 permitted) and requires a modified retrospective transition approach through a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the period of adoption. The Registrants are currently assessing the impacts of this standard.
Goodwill Impairment (Issued January 2017): Simplifies the accounting for goodwill impairment by removing Step 2 of the current test, which requires calculation of a hypothetical purchase price allocation. Under the revised guidance, goodwill impairment will be measured as the amount by which a reporting unit’s carrying value exceeds its fair value, not to exceed the carrying amount of goodwill (currently Step 1 of the two-step impairment test). Entities will continue to have the option to perform a qualitative assessment to determine if a quantitative impairment test is necessary. Exelon, Generation, ComEd, PHI and DPL have goodwill as of September 30, 2018. This updated guidance is not currently expected to impact the Registrants’ financial reporting. The standard is effective January 1, 2020, with early adoption permitted, and must be applied on a prospective basis.
Derivatives and Hedging (Issued September 2017): Allows more financial and nonfinancial hedging strategies to be eligible for hedge accounting. The amendments are intended to more closely align hedge accounting with companies’ risk management strategies, simplify the application of hedge accounting, and increase transparency as to the scope and results of hedging programs. There are also amendments related to effectiveness testing and disclosure requirements. The standard is effective January 1, 2019, with early adoption permitted, and must be applied using a modified retrospective transition approach. Given the de-designation of hedge accounting relationships as of July 1, 2018, this standard is not expected to impact the Registrants' financial reporting as discussed in Note 10 - Derivative Financial Instruments.
Cloud Computing Arrangements (Issued August 2018): Aligns the requirements for capitalizing costs incurred to implement a cloud computing arrangement with the internal-use software guidance. As a result, certain implementation costs incurred in a cloud computing arrangement that are currently expensed as incurred will be deferred and amortized over the non-cancellable term of the arrangement plus any reasonably certain renewal periods. The standard is effective January 1, 2020, with early adoption permitted, and can be applied using either a prospective or retrospective transition approach. A retrospective approach requires a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the period of adoption. The Registrants are currently assessing the impacts of this standard.
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosures (Issued August 2018): Eliminates existing disclosure requirements related to amounts in accumulated other comprehensive income expected to be recognized in net periodic benefit cost over the next year and the effects of a one-percentage-point change in the assumed health care cost trend rates. In addition, new disclosures were added such as the weighted-average interest crediting rates for cash balance plans and an explanation for the reasons for significant gains and losses related to changes in the benefit obligation. The standard is effective January 1, 2021, with early adoption permitted, and must be applied retrospectively. Exelon will early adopt this standard in the fourth quarter 2018.
Fair Value Measurement Disclosures (Issued August 2018): Removes, modifies and adds disclosure requirements for fair value measurements and aims to reduce costs for preparers and improve the usefulness of information for financial statement users. The standard is effective January 1, 2020, with early adoption permitted, and most amendments must be applied retrospectively with the exception of three amendments which must be applied prospectively. In addition, entities are permitted to delay adoption of the additional disclosure requirements until the effective date and early adopt the removal or modified disclosure requirements. The Registrants are currently assessing the impacts of this standard as well as the potential to early adopt.