Income Taxes

Our provision for income taxes including the impact of deferred tax asset valuation allowance is as follows:



	Third Quarter						First Nine Months
	2015			2014			2015			2014
	(In thousands)
Current income tax benefit (expense)	$	(27	)	$	(200	)	$	(27	)	$	(4,815	)
Deferred income tax benefit (expense)	34,678			(2,555		)	60,844			(10,649		)
Deferred tax asset valuation allowance benefit (expense)	(98,887		)	—			(99,950		)	—
Income tax benefit (expense)	$	(64,236	)	$	(2,755	)	$	(39,133	)	$	(15,464	)

Our effective tax rate was 64 percent in third quarter 2015 and 23 percent in first nine months 2015. Excluding the impact of valuation allowance, our effective tax rate was a 35 percent benefit in third quarter 2015 and 36 percent benefit in first nine months 2015. Our effective tax rate was 35 percent in third quarter and first nine months 2014. Our effective tax rates include the effect of state income taxes, noncontrolling interests, nondeductible items and benefits of percentage depletion.

We assess available positive and negative evidence to estimate whether sufficient future taxable income will be generated to permit use of the existing deferred tax asset. In determining our valuation allowance, a significant piece of objective negative evidence evaluated was the cumulative loss incurred over the three-year period ended September 30, 2015, principally driven by impairments of oil and gas assets. Such evidence limits our ability to consider other subjective evidence, such as our projected future taxable income.

A valuation allowance was recorded for the portion of our deferred tax asset that we believe is more likely than not to be unrealizable at third quarter-end 2015. The amount of deferred tax asset considered realizable, however, could be adjusted if estimates of future taxable income are reduced or increased or if objective negative evidence in the form of cumulative losses is no longer present and additional weight is given to subjective evidence, such as our projected future taxable income.