INCOME TAXES

At December 31, 2013, the Company had cumulative net operating loss carryforwards (“NOL CFs”) for federal income tax purposes of approximately $97.5 million, which begin to expire in 2024 if not utilized before then. The deferred tax asset balance includes $2.0 million net of a $0.2 million valuation allowance related to state NOL CFs, which have remaining lives ranging from one to twenty years. These NOL CFs are attributable to excess tax deductions related primarily to the accelerated tax depreciation of fixed assets.

The significant components of the deferred income tax assets and liabilities as of December 31, 2013 and 2012 are as follows (in thousands):



	December 31
	2013			2012
Deferred tax assets:
Net operating loss carryforward and federal credits	$	36,624		$	34,401
Capital and operating leases	2,841			1,742
Post-retirement employee benefits	6,470			62,823
Employee benefits other than post-retirement	16,667			18,010
Inventory reserve	3,050			3,181
Deferred revenue	8,903			10,770
Other	1,262			458
Deferred tax assets	75,817			131,385
Deferred tax liabilities:
Accelerated depreciation	(155,769		)	(147,282		)
Partnership items	(9,466		)	(9,418		)
State taxes	(6,265		)	(1,724		)
Valuation allowance against deferred tax assets	(229		)	(229		)
Deferred tax liabilities	(171,729		)	(158,653		)
Net deferred tax (liability)	$	(95,912	)	$	(27,268	)

The following summarizes the Company’s income tax provisions (benefits) (in thousands):



	Years Ended December 31
	2013			2012			2011
Current taxes:
Federal	$	67		$	—		$	(950	)
Foreign	—			337			—
State	425			145			426
Deferred taxes:
Federal	17,902			23,454			15,968
Foreign	—			—			—
State	872			736			1,551
Total deferred tax expense	18,774			24,190			17,519
Total income tax expense from continuing operations	$	19,266		$	24,672		$	16,995
Income tax expense (benefit) from discontinued operations	$	(2	)	$	(441	)	$	(393	)

The reconciliation of income tax from continuing operations computed at the U.S. statutory federal income tax rates to effective income tax rates is as follows:



	Years Ended December 31
	2013		2012		2011
Statutory federal tax rate	35.0	%	35.0	%	35.0	%
Foreign income taxes	—	%	0.3	%	—	%
State income taxes, net of federal tax benefit	(234.7	)%	0.9	%	3.1	%
Tax effect of non-deductible goodwill	(5,121.2	)%	—	%	2.4	%
Tax effect of other non-deductible expenses	(26.4	)%	1.1	%	1.7	%
Other	(19.3	)%	(0.1	)%	(0.6	)%
Effective income tax rate	(5,366.6	)%	37.2	%	41.6	%

The reconciliation of income tax from discontinued operations computed at the U.S. statutory federal income tax rates to effective income tax rates is as follows:



	Years Ended December 31
	2013		2012		2011
Statutory federal tax rate	(35.0	)%	(35.0	)%	(35.0	)%
State income taxes, net of federal tax benefit	(1.3	)%	(1.3	)%	(1.8	)%
Effective income tax rate	(36.3	)%	(36.3	)%	(36.8	)%

The Company files income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction and various international, state and local jurisdictions. The returns may be subject to audit by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) and other jurisdictional authorities. International returns consist of disclosure returns where the Company is covered by the sourcing rules of U.S. international treaties. The Company recognizes the impact of an uncertain income tax position in the financial statements if that position is more likely than not of being sustained on audit, based on the technical merits of the position. At December 31, 2013, 2012 and 2011, the Company's unrecognized tax benefits were $0.0 million, $0.0 million and $0.0 million respectively. Accrued interest and penalties on tax positions are recorded as a component of interest expense. Interest and penalties expense was immaterial for 2013, 2012 and 2011.

The Company began to file, effective in 2008, federal tax returns under a common parent of the consolidated group that includes ABX and all the wholly-owned subsidiaries. All returns related to the current consolidated group remain open to examination with the exception of the 2008. The consolidated federal tax returns prior to 2007 remain open to federal examination only to the extent of net operating loss carryforwards carried over from or utilized in those years. State and local returns filed for 2005 through 2012 are generally also open to examination by their respective jurisdictions.