Income Taxes

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2023

Income Taxes

Income Taxes

(10) Income Taxes

The Company has incurred losses since inception. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the differences between the financial statement carrying amounts and tax bases of assets and liabilities using enacted tax rates in effect for years in which differences are expected to reverse.

Significant components of the Company’s deferred tax assets for federal income taxes consisted of the following (in thousands):

	December 31,
	2023		2022
Deferred tax assets
Net operating loss carryforwards	$	61,427	$	55,091
Interest expense carryforward		523		—
Research and development credits		830		623
Lease liability		557		387
Capitalized research and development expenses		4,845		1,743
Accrued expenses and other		3,535		2,682
Inventory reserve		289		372
Gross deferred tax asset		72,006		60,898
Deferred tax liabilities
Depreciation and amortization		(436)		(435)
Right of use asset		(484)		(302)
Gross deferred tax liability		(920)		(737)
Net deferred tax asset before valuation allowance		71,086		60,161
Valuation allowance		(71,086)		(60,161)
Net deferred tax asset	$	—	$	—

The Company does not have unrecognized tax benefits as of December 31, 2023 and 2022. The Company recognizes interest and penalties accrued on any unrecognized tax benefits as a component of income tax expense.

The Company’s net operating loss (“NOL”) carryforwards for federal and state income tax purposes consisted of the following (in thousands):

	December 31,
	2023		2022
NOL carryforwards
Federal	$	239,417	$	212,314
State		196,132		173,472

The NOL carryforwards begin expiring in 2032 for federal purposes and in 2027 for state income tax purposes yet $160.0 million of the federal NOL carryforwards have no expiration. The Company recorded a valuation allowance on the deferred tax assets as of December 31, 2023 and 2022 because of the uncertainty of their realization. The valuation allowance increased by $10.9 million and $10.4 million for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively, mainly due to losses incurred.

Utilization of the net operating losses and general business tax credits carryforwards may be subject to a substantial limitation under Sections 382 and 383 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, if changes in ownership of the company have occurred previously or occur in the future. Ownership changes may limit the amount of net operating losses and general business tax credits carryforwards that can be utilized annually to offset future taxable income and tax, respectively. In general, an ownership change, as defined by Section 382, results from transactions increasing the

ownership of 5% shareholders in the stock of a corporation by more than 50 percentage points over a three-year period. If the Company experiences a Section 382 ownership change, the tax benefits related to the NOL carryforwards may be further limited or lost. The Company has not performed an analysis under Section 382 and cannot predict or otherwise determine whether there would be any limitation to the amount of net operating losses and general business tax credits carryforwards that can be utilized.

A reconciliation of income tax benefit at the statutory federal income tax rate and as reflected in the consolidated financial statements is as follows:

	Year ended December 31,
	2023		2022		2021
Rate reconciliation
Federal tax benefit at statutory rate	(21.0)	%	(21.0)	%	(21.0)	%
State rate, net of federal benefit	(3.1)		(3.1)		(3.5)
Permanent differences	0.7		0.6		0.2
Research and development	(0.4)		—		0.4
Change in valuation allowance	23.4		23.4		24.2
Other	0.4		0.1		(0.3)
Total tax provision	—	%	—	%	—	%

The Company files income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction, various state jurisdictions and the United Kingdom. Tax years 2020 and forward remain open for examination for federal and the Company’s more significant state tax jurisdictions. Carryforward attributes from prior years may be adjusted upon examination by taxing authorities if used in an open period.