Income Taxes

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2012

Income Taxes

Income Taxes

(9)Income Taxes

An uncertain tax position taken or expected to be taken in a tax return is recognized in the financial statements when it is more likely than not (i.e., a likelihood of more than fifty percent) that the position would be sustained upon examination by tax authorities that have full knowledge of all relevant information. A recognized tax position is then measured at the largest amount of benefit that is greater than fifty percent likely of being realized upon ultimate settlement. Interest and penalties related to income taxes are accounted for as income tax expense.

As of March 31, 2012, we had $1,418,000 of unrecognized tax benefits, all of which would favorably impact the effective tax rate if recognized. We expect that the liability for unrecognized tax benefits will decrease by $1,418,000 during the year ended December 31, 2012 as the tax position relates to a period that will be outside the applicable statute of limitations in 2012. For the three months ended March 31, 2012 and 2011, we recognized $12,000 and $18,000, respectively, of interest expense related to these tax positions which is reflected as income tax expense in the consolidated statements of operations. As of March 31, 2012, we had $172,000 of accrued interest related to these tax positions. We and our subsidiaries file income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction, and various state and foreign jurisdictions.  With few exceptions, we are no longer subject to U.S. federal, state and local, or non-U.S. income tax examination by tax authorities for years prior to 2002.