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Income Taxes
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2018
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Taxes Income Taxes

On a quarterly basis, the Company estimates the effective tax rate expected to be applicable for the full year and makes changes if necessary based on new information or events. The estimated annual effective tax rate is forecast based on actual historical information and forward-looking estimates and is used to provide for income taxes in interim reporting periods. The Company also recognizes the tax impact of certain unusual or infrequently occurring items, such as the effects of changes in tax laws or rates and impacts from settlements with tax authorities, discretely in the quarter in which they occur.

The Company recorded income tax benefit of $1.8 million for the three months ended September 30, 2018, an effective income tax rate of 48.5%, as compared to income tax expense of $2.4 million for the three months ended September 30, 2017, an effective income tax rate of 47.7%. Income tax expense was $5.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018, an effective income tax rate of 24.4%, as compared to $7.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2017, an effective income tax rate of (38.2)%. The current year income tax expense for both the three and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2018 reflect the reduction in the U.S. statutory tax rate and other U.S. tax law changes as a result of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

Our effective income tax rate for the three months ended September 30, 2018, is higher than our effective income tax rate for the three months ended September 30, 2017, due to the current period loss before income taxes and additional tax benefits from tax credits and permanent provision to return items, including reversal of the provisional estimate for transition tax. These items resulted in a net increase of 14.8%, offset by the decrease in the U.S. federal statutory rate of 14%.

Our effective income tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2018, is higher than our effective income tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2017, as attributed to the Company’s loss before income taxes in the period ended September 31, 2017, after a goodwill write-off which did not provide a corresponding tax benefit. This was partially offset in the current period by the reduction of the U.S. corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% as a result of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

The company’s accounting for certain elements of the Tax Act was incomplete as of the period ended December 31, 2017, and remains incomplete as of September 30, 2018. However, the company was able to make reasonable estimates of the effects and, therefore, recorded provisional estimates for these items. In connection with its initial analysis of the impact of the Tax
Act, the Company recorded a provisional discrete net tax benefit of $73.5 million in the period ended December 31, 2017. This provisional estimate consists of a net expense of $1.4 million for the one-time transition tax and a net benefit of $74.9 million related to revaluation of deferred tax assets and liabilities, caused by the new lower corporate tax rate. To determine the
transition tax provisional estimate, the Company determined the estimate of the amount of post-1986 accumulated earnings and profits of the relevant subsidiaries, as well as the amount of non-U.S. income taxes paid on such earnings. While the Company was able to make a reasonable estimate of the impact of the reduction to the corporate tax rate, its rate may be affected by other analysis related to the Tax Act, including, but not limited to, the state tax effect of adjustments made to federal temporary differences. Due to the complexity of the new global intangible low-taxed income ("GILTI") tax rules, the company is continuing to evaluate this provision of the Tax Act and the application of ASC 740. Under GAAP, the Company is allowed to make an accounting policy choice to either (i) treat taxes due on future U.S. inclusions in taxable income related to GILTI as a current-period expense when incurred (the “period cost method"); or (ii) factor in such amounts into a company’s measurement of its deferred taxes (the “deferred method”). The Company’s selection of an accounting policy with respect to the new GILTI tax rules is dependent on additional analysis and potential future modifications to existing structures, which are not currently known. The Company has not made a policy decision regarding whether to record deferred taxes on GILTI. The Company will continue to analyze the full effects of the Tax Act on its Consolidated Financial Statements. During the third quarter of 2018, a portion of initial estimate was refined as a result of the US federal tax return filing and regulations issued by the Internal Revenue Service. As a result, the Company recorded a provisional benefit of $1.4 million in the third quarter of 2018 to reverse the one-time transition tax expense provisional estimate, as well as a $1.3 million expense related to the remeasurement of certain deferred tax assets and liabilities. The measurement period under SAB 118 remains open as there is still anticipated guidance clarifying certain aspects of the Act. Any subsequent adjustment to these amounts will be recorded to current tax expense in the fourth quarter of 2018 when the full analysis is complete.