INCOME TAXES INCOME TAXES

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

INCOME TAXES

INCOME TAXES

Effective tax rates for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015 were 46.2% and 58.1%. The Company did not record any tax charges or benefits as a result of the goodwill impairment charge recorded in the second quarter of 2015. Absent the impact of the impairment charge on pre-tax income from operations, the Company’s effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2015 was 44.4%. As a result of the goodwill impairment charge recorded in the third quarter of 2014, the Company recorded an income tax benefit of $2.7 million. Absent the impact of the impairment charge on pre-tax income from operations the Company’s effective tax rate for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2014 was 55.6% and 47.3%. The decrease in the effective rates absent the impact of impairment charges for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015 was primarily due to discrete items recorded in the third quarter of 2014 which did not reoccur in 2015.

As of September 30, 2015 and December 31, 2014, the Company had recorded $2.2 million and $2.5 million, respectively, of liabilities for unrecognized tax benefits and $0.4 million of interest, respectively.

Due to an audit settlement for one of our foreign entities, the Company believes that total unrecognized tax benefits will decrease by approximately $0.5 million within the next 12 months.