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Income Taxes
3 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2017
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Taxes
Income Taxes

The effective tax rate for the quarters ended December 31, 2017 and December 31, 2016 was negative 69.2% and 38.8%, respectively. The difference is a result of the impact of the one-time remeasurement of the deferred income tax liability and a lower statutory rate of 24.5% as a result of the 2017 Tax Reform Act (as discussed below).
On December 22, 2017, the tax legislation referred to as the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (the 2017 Tax Reform Act) was enacted. The 2017 Tax Reform Act significantly changes the taxation of business entities and includes specific provisions related to rate regulated companies. The more significant changes that impact the Company are the reduction in the corporate federal income tax rate from 35% to a blended 24.5% for fiscal 2018 and 21% for fiscal 2019 and beyond. As a fiscal year taxpayer, the Company is required to use a blended tax rate for fiscal 2018. In addition, beginning in fiscal 2019, the corporate alternative minimum tax will be eliminated and there will be enhanced limitations on the deductibility of certain executive compensation. For the rate regulated subsidiaries, the 2017 Tax Reform Act also allows for the continued deductibility of interest expense, the elimination of full expensing for tax purposes of certain property acquired after September 27, 2017 and the continuation of certain rate normalization requirements for accelerated depreciation benefits. The non-rate regulated subsidiaries are allowed full expensing of certain property acquired after September 27, 2017 and have potential limitations on the deductibility of interest expense beginning in fiscal 2019.
The above changes had a material impact on the financial statements in the quarter ended December 31, 2017. Under GAAP, the tax effects of a change in tax law must be recognized in the period in which the law is enacted, or the quarter ending December 31, 2017 for the 2017 Tax Reform Act. GAAP also requires deferred income tax assets and liabilities to be measured at the enacted tax rate expected to apply when temporary differences are to be realized or settled. The Company’s deferred income taxes were remeasured based upon the new tax rates. For the non-rate regulated activities, the change in deferred income taxes was $111.0 million and was recorded as a reduction to income tax expense. For the rate regulated activities, the reduction in deferred income taxes of $336.7 million was recorded as a decrease to Recoverable Future Taxes of $65.7 million and an increase to Taxes Refundable to Customers of $271.0 million. The 2017 Tax Reform Act includes provisions that stipulate how these excess deferred taxes are to be passed back to customers for certain accelerated tax depreciation benefits. Potential refunds of other deferred income taxes will be determined by the federal and state regulatory agencies. The Company is awaiting regulatory guidance in the jurisdictions in which it operates.
The 2017 Tax Reform Act also repealed the corporate alternative minimum tax (AMT) and provides that the Company’s existing AMT credit carryovers are refundable beginning in fiscal 2019. As of December 31, 2017, the Company had $92.0 million of AMT credit carryovers that are expected to be utilized or refunded between fiscal 2019 and fiscal 2022.
The SEC issued guidance in Staff Accounting Bulletin 118 (SAB 118) which provides for up to a one year period (the measurement period) in which to complete the required analysis and income tax accounting for the 2017 Tax Reform Act. SAB 118 describes three scenarios associated with a company’s status of accounting for income tax reform: (1) a company is complete with its accounting for certain effects of tax reform, (2) a company is able to determine a reasonable estimate for certain effects of tax reform and records that estimate as a provisional amount, or (3) a company is not able to determine a reasonable estimate and therefore continues to apply the provisions of the tax laws that were in effect immediately prior to the 2017 Tax Reform Act being enacted.

The Company has determined a reasonable estimate for the measurement of the changes in deferred income taxes (noted above), which have been reflected as provisional amounts in the December 31, 2017 financial statements. The final determination of the impact of the income tax effects of these items will require additional analysis and further interpretation of the 2017 Tax Reform Act from yet to be issued U.S. Treasury regulations, state income tax guidance, federal and state regulatory guidance and technical corrections.