RECENT ACCOUNTING GUIDANCE

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

New Accounting Pronouncements and Changes in Accounting Principles [Abstract]

RECENT ACCOUNTING GUIDANCE

RECENT ACCOUNTING GUIDANCE

Recently Adopted Accounting Guidance

In 2019, the Company adopted Topic 842, which requires organizations that lease assets to recognize on the balance sheet the assets and liabilities for the rights and obligations created by those leases. The new guidance requires that a lessee recognize assets and liabilities for leases, and recognition, presentation and measurement in the financial statements will depend on its classification as a finance or operating lease. In addition, the new guidance requires disclosures to help investors and other financial statement users better understand the amount, timing and uncertainty of cash flows arising from leases. Lessor accounting remains largely unchanged from legacy U.S. GAAP but does contain some targeted improvements to align with the new revenue recognition guidance in Topic 606. The new standard was effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2018, and early adoption was permitted.

The Company adopted Topic 842 using the modified retrospective transition approach, applying the new standard to leases existing at the date of initial adoption. The Company elected to apply the transition requirements at the effective date rather than at the beginning of the earliest comparative period presented with a cumulative effect adjustment to the opening balance of retained earnings in the period of adoption, and prior periods were not restated. In addition, the Company elected to apply the package of practical expedients permitted under the transition guidance which does not require reassessment of prior conclusions, lease classification and initial direct lease costs. The Company did not elect to use the hindsight practical expedient in determining the lease term or assessing impairment of ROU assets. Adoption of the new standard resulted in the recording of operating lease ROU assets and lease liabilities of $2.3 billion at January 1, 2019. The net impact to retained earnings was an increase of $32 million and was primarily a result of the recognition of a deferred gain associated with a prior sale-leaseback transaction. The adoption of the new guidance did not have a material impact on Dow's consolidated statements of income and had no impact on cash flows. See Notes 1 and 18 for additional information.

Accounting Guidance Issued But Not Adopted at December 31, 2019

In August 2018, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued ASU 2018-13, "Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820): Disclosure Framework - Changes to the Disclosure Requirements for Fair Value Measurement," which is part of the FASB disclosure framework project to improve the effectiveness of disclosures in the notes to the financial statements. The amendments in the new guidance remove, modify and add certain disclosure requirements related to fair value measurements covered in Topic 820, "Fair Value Measurement." The new standard is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2019. Early adoption is permitted for either the entire standard or only the requirements that modify or eliminate the disclosure requirements, with certain requirements applied prospectively, and all other requirements applied retrospectively to all periods presented. The Company expects to adopt the new guidance in the first quarter of 2020 and the adoption of this guidance is not expected to have a material impact on the consolidated financial statements.

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-15, "Intangibles - Goodwill and Other - Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350-40): Customer's Accounting for Implementation Costs Incurred in a Cloud Computing Arrangement That is a Service Contract," which requires a customer in a cloud computing arrangement that is a service contract to follow the internal-use software guidance in Topic 350, "Intangibles - Goodwill and Other" to determine which implementation costs to capitalize as assets or expense as incurred. The new standard is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2019. Early adoption is permitted and an entity can elect to apply the new guidance on a prospective or retrospective basis. The Company expects to adopt the new guidance in the first quarter of 2020 and the adoption of this guidance is not expected to have a material impact on the consolidated financial statements.

In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, "Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes." The amendments simplify the accounting for income taxes by removing certain exceptions to the general principles of Topic 740, "Income Taxes" and also improve consistent application by clarifying and amending existing guidance. The new standard is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2020. Early adoption is permitted, with the amendments to be applied on a retrospective, modified retrospective or prospective basis, depending on the specific amendment. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adopting this guidance.