Income Taxes	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2018
Income Taxes
Income Taxes	9. Income Taxes In December 2017, the President of the United States signed into law comprehensive tax reform legislation commonly known as Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Tax Act”), which introduced significant changes to the previous tax law. This new legislation reduced the federal corporate income tax rate from 35% to 21%, effective January 1, 2018. In December 2017, the Company recorded an increase to deferred tax expense of approximately $261.3 million on the date of enactment primarily relating to a reduction of our net deferred tax asset because of the rate change. The adjustments related to the application of the Tax Act continue to be provisional amounts to the extent that they are reasonably estimable and the Company will refine them as more information becomes available. In accordance with Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118, any adjustments to the provisional changes will be included in income tax expense or benefit in the appropriate period. During the three month period ended September 30, 2018, the Company made a measurement period adjustment related to the provisional amount of transition tax for 2017 in the amount of $0.9 million of additional tax expense. The transition tax is a one-time deemed repatriation tax on undistributed foreign earnings and profits which is attributable to the management service contract with Casino Rama. The Company recognized a provisional tax expense of $2.6 million in 2017 and has increased that amount to $3.5 million as of September 30, 2018. The Company calculates the provision for income taxes during interim reporting periods by applying an estimate of the annual effective tax rate to the full year projected pretax book income or loss excluding certain discrete items. The effective tax rate (income taxes as a percentage of income from operations before income taxes) including discrete items was 20.07% and 22.79% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018, as compared to (2,507.15)% and (1,232.94)% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017. The effective tax rates for 2017 benefited from the deferred tax valuation allowance reversal of $766.2 million for the three and nine month period ended September 30, 2017.

9. Income Taxes

In December 2017, the President of the United States signed into law comprehensive tax reform legislation commonly known as Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Tax Act”), which introduced significant changes to the previous tax law. This new legislation reduced the federal corporate income tax rate from 35% to 21%, effective January 1, 2018. In December 2017, the Company recorded an increase to deferred tax expense of approximately $261.3 million on the date of enactment primarily relating to a reduction of our net deferred tax asset because of the rate change. The adjustments related to the application of the Tax Act continue to be provisional amounts to the extent that they are reasonably estimable and the Company will refine them as more information becomes available. In accordance with Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118, any adjustments to the provisional changes will be included in income tax expense or benefit in the appropriate period. During the three month period ended September 30, 2018, the Company made a measurement period adjustment related to the provisional amount of transition tax for 2017 in the amount of $0.9 million of additional tax expense. The transition tax is a one-time deemed repatriation tax on undistributed foreign earnings and profits which is attributable to the management service contract with Casino Rama. The Company recognized a provisional tax expense of $2.6 million in 2017 and has increased that amount to $3.5 million as of September 30, 2018.

The Company calculates the provision for income taxes during interim reporting periods by applying an estimate of the annual effective tax rate to the full year projected pretax book income or loss excluding certain discrete items. The effective tax rate (income taxes as a percentage of income from operations before income taxes) including discrete items was 20.07% and 22.79% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018, as compared to (2,507.15)% and (1,232.94)% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017. The effective tax rates for 2017 benefited from the deferred tax valuation allowance reversal of $766.2 million for the three and nine month period ended September 30, 2017.