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INCOME TAXES
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2023
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
INCOME TAXES INCOME TAXES
The Company accounts for income taxes using ASC 740, “Income Taxes,” which is an asset and liability approach that requires the recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected future tax consequences of events that have been recognized differently in the financial statements and the tax returns. The provision for income taxes consists of the following at December 31:
($ in thousands)202320222021
Total provision (benefit):$2,323 $7,393 $3,821 
Federal:
Current1,371 3,330 1,960 
Deferred353 1,718 620 
1,724 5,048 2,580 
State:
Current584 2,044 937 
Deferred15 301 304 
599 2,345 1,241 
$2,323 $7,393 $3,821 

In 2023, the Company’s effective tax rate varies from the statutory federal rate primarily due to permanent differences related to Section 162(m) limitations, state taxes and excess stock compensation expense. The Section 162(m) compensation deduction limitations occurred as a result of changes in tax law arising from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which first impacted the Company in 2020. A reconciliation of the provision for income taxes, with the amount computed by applying the statutory Federal income tax rate of 21% in 2023, 2022 and 2021, is as follows for the years ended December 31: 
($ in thousands)202320222021
Income tax at statutory rate$1,195 $4,869 $1,924 
State income taxes, net of Federal benefit578 1,851 802 
Excess stock compensation (benefit) expense(501)(147)34 
Non-deductible compensation1,302 1,008 539 
Oil and mineral depletion(130)(147)(108)
Permanent differences9 10 26 
Stock compensation true-up— — 641 
Other(130)(51)(37)
Provision for income taxes$2,323 $7,393 $3,821 
Effective tax rate41.6 %31.9 %41.7 %
Deferred income taxes reflect the net tax effects of temporary differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities for financial reporting purposes and the amounts used for income tax purposes. Significant components of the Company’s deferred tax assets and liabilities were as follows at December 31:
($ in thousands)20232022
Deferred income tax assets:
Accrued expenses$293 $333 
Deferred revenues563 447 
Capitalization of costs1,218 1,280 
Pension adjustment1,921 1,940 
Stock grant expense1,048 1,364 
State deferred taxes355 555 
Book deferred gains2,127 2,127 
Joint venture allocations552 566 
Provision for additional capitalized costs699 699 
Interest rate swap1,444 335 
Other81 136 
Total deferred income tax assets$10,301 $9,782 
Deferred income tax liabilities:
Deferred gains$1,753 $1,753 
Depreciation4,766 4,492 
Cost of sales allocations872 872 
Joint venture allocations7,272 6,900 
Capitalized stock compensation1,202 1,058 
Straight line rent296 348 
Prepaid expenses369 318 
State deferred taxes96 96 
Interest rate swap1,444 762 
Other500 363 
Total deferred income tax liabilities$18,570 $16,962 
Net deferred income tax (liability)$(8,269)$(7,180)
Allowance for deferred tax assets— — 
Net deferred taxes$(8,269)$(7,180)
Due to the nature of the Company's deferred tax assets, the Company believes they will be used through operations in future years and a valuation allowance is not necessary.
The Company made $2,564,000 in estimated tax payments in 2023 and $8,237,000 in 2022. The Company received tax refunds of $0 and $1,410,000 in 2023 and 2022, respectively.
The Company evaluates its tax positions for all income tax items based on their technical merits to determine whether each position satisfies the “more likely than not to be sustained upon examination” test. The tax benefits are then measured as the largest amount of benefit, determined on a cumulative basis, that is “more likely than not” to be realized upon ultimate settlement. As a result of this evaluation, the Company determined there were no uncertain tax positions that required recognition and measurement for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 within the scope of ASC 740, "Income Taxes." Tax years from 2020 to 2022 and 2019 to 2022 remain available for examination by the Federal and California State taxing authorities, respectively.