Income Taxes (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Aug. 31, 2021

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

Income Tax Expense from Continuing Operations

Income tax expense from continuing operations is summarized as follows (in thousands):

	Year ended August 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Currently payable:
Federal	$	(18,243)	$	(35)	$	(2,040)
Foreign	12,441		10,004		9,370
State	539		142		1,347
	(5,263)		10,111		8,677
Deferred:
Federal	9,677		(7,791)		(400)
Foreign	185		(1,632)		2,172
State	(836)		1,604		208
	9,026		(7,819)		1,980
Income tax expense	$	3,763	$	2,292	$	10,657

Reconciliation of Income Taxes at Federal Statutory Rate to Effective Tax Rate

A reconciliation of income taxes at the federal statutory rate to the effective tax rate is summarized in the following table:

	Year ended August 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Federal statutory rate	21.0	%	21.0	%	21.0	%
State income taxes, net of Federal effect	(0.2)		(0.6)		(4.0)
Tax on foreign earnings (1)	2.8		38.7		20.6
Foreign derived intangible income deduction	(3.2)		—		(9.3)
Compensation adjustment	3.1		6.6		4.4
Impairment and other divestiture charges (2)	1.6		3.3		19.3
Valuation allowance additions and releases (3)	7.1		(8.1)		3.9
Changes in liability for unrecognized tax benefits	(18.5)		(5.3)		4.1
U.S. legislative changes, net impact	(9.8)		(32.5)		(31.1)
Taxable liquidation of subsidiaries (4)	—		52.6		—
Foreign non-deductible expenses	1.2		7.4		18.2
Changes in tax rates	(3.4)		(9.0)		1.7
Audits and adjustments (5)	8.0		(27.4)		10.0
Research and development tax credit	(1.8)		(11.5)		(5.2)
Other items	0.7		(6.0)		3.3
Effective income tax rate	8.6	%	29.2	%	56.9	%

(1) The Company generated $1.7 million, $5.4 million and $2.6 million of withholding tax expense for fiscal 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively, and $4.6 million, $4.0 million and $3.5 million of foreign-derived tax credits, excluding the impact of tax reform for fiscal 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively.

(2) Fiscal 2021, 2020 and 2019 pretax earnings include $6.2 million, $(3.2) million and $22.8 million, respectively, in impairment & divestiture charges (benefits) related to goodwill, intangible assets, tangible assets and the cumulative effect of foreign currency rate changes of which $3.5 million, $0.3 million and $14.0 million, respectively, are not deductible for income tax purposes.

(3) Incremental valuation allowances of $4.9 million and $9.4 million and $1.7 million were recorded in fiscal 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively, due to uncertainty regarding realization of tax assets, which were offset by a reduction of $9.1 million, $12.3 million and $2.9 million of valuation allowances for fiscal 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. These amounts exclude valuation allowances against tax assets related to the tax reform.

(4) During fiscal 2020, the Company generated a net expense of $4.1 million as a result of taxable liquidations of subsidiaries.

(5) During fiscal 2021, the Company generated $3.5 million of tax benefit related to audits and adjustments as compared to a tax benefit of $2.2 million in fiscal 2020 and a tax expense of $1.9 million in fiscal 2019.

Temporary Differences and Carryforwards of Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities

Temporary differences and carryforwards that gave rise to deferred tax assets and liabilities include the following items (in thousands):

	August 31,
	2021		2020
Deferred income tax assets:
Operating loss and tax credit carryforwards	$	77,691	$	99,905
Compensation related liabilities	6,110		5,941
Postretirement benefits	8,364		9,068
Inventory	3,177		1,793
Lease liabilities	11,609		10,526
Book reserves and other items	11,471		6,752
Total deferred income tax assets	118,422		133,985
Valuation allowance	(66,155)		(70,414)
Net deferred income tax assets	52,267		63,571
Deferred income tax liabilities:
Depreciation and amortization	(29,444)		(31,457)
Lease assets	(11,609)		(10,526)
Other items	(781)		(702)
Deferred income tax liabilities	(41,834)		(42,685)
Net deferred income tax asset (1)	$	10,433	$	20,886

(1) The net deferred income tax asset is reflected on the balance sheet in two categories: an asset of $14.8 million and $22.6 million for fiscal 2021 and 2020, respectively, is included in "Other long-term assets" and a liability of $4.4 million and $1.7 million for fiscal 2021 and 2020, respectively, is included in "Deferred income taxes".

Changes in Gross Liability for Unrecognized Tax benefits, Excluding Interest and Penalties

Changes in the Company’s gross liability for unrecognized tax benefits, excluding interest and penalties, are as follows (in thousands):

	2021		2020		2019
Beginning balance	$	23,205	$	24,167	$	24,359
Increases based on tax positions related to the current year	381		869		2,169
Increase for tax positions taken in a prior period	7		304		1,422
Decrease due to lapse of statute of limitations	(7,931)		(2,334)		(3,212)
Decrease due to settlements	—		—		(324)
Changes in foreign currency exchange rates	(4)		199		(247)
Ending balance	$	15,658	$	23,205	$	24,167