Income Taxes	3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2015
Income Taxes
Income Taxes	13. Income Taxes The Company has recorded a tax benefit on its year-to-date pre-tax loss. The Company believes this methodology to be more appropriate at this time due to uncertainty in forecasting the annual effective tax rate (or benefit) on 2015 income (or loss) due to previously recorded property impairments, the effects of federal and state valuation allowance adjustments, and hedging volatility. For the three months ended March 31, 2015, the Company’s effective tax rate was approximately 4.5%. The Company’s effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2015 differs from the federal statutory rate of 35% due to the effect of recurring permanent adjustments, state income taxes and changes in the valuation allowance. During 2015, the Company recorded $70.9 million in additional valuation allowance in light of the impairment of oil and gas properties and the settlement of certain hedging contracts that existed at December 31, 2014, bringing the total valuation allowance to $74.7 million at March 31, 2015. A valuation allowance has been recorded as management does not believe that it is more-likely-than-not that its deferred tax assets are realizable except to the extent of future taxable income primarily related to the excess of book carrying value of properties over their respective tax bases. No other sources of future taxable income are considered in this judgment. The Company expects to incur a tax loss in the current year due to the flexibility in deducting or capitalizing current year intangible drilling costs; thus no current income taxes are anticipated to be paid.

Income Taxes

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2015

13. Income Taxes

The Company has recorded a tax benefit on its year-to-date pre-tax loss. The Company believes this methodology to be more appropriate at this time due to uncertainty in forecasting the annual effective tax rate (or benefit) on 2015 income (or loss) due to previously recorded property impairments, the effects of federal and state valuation allowance adjustments, and hedging volatility.

For the three months ended March 31, 2015, the Company’s effective tax rate was approximately 4.5%. The Company’s effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2015 differs from the federal statutory rate of 35% due to the effect of recurring permanent adjustments, state income taxes and changes in the valuation allowance. During 2015, the Company recorded $70.9 million in additional valuation allowance in light of the impairment of oil and gas properties and the settlement of certain hedging contracts that existed at December 31, 2014, bringing the total valuation allowance to $74.7 million at March 31, 2015.

A valuation allowance has been recorded as management does not believe that it is more-likely-than-not that its deferred tax assets are realizable except to the extent of future taxable income primarily related to the excess of book carrying value of properties over their respective tax bases. No other sources of future taxable income are considered in this judgment.

The Company expects to incur a tax loss in the current year due to the flexibility in deducting or capitalizing current year intangible drilling costs; thus no current income taxes are anticipated to be paid.