Income Taxes

The provision for income taxes is comprised of the following:



	Year Ended December 31,
	2015		2014		2013
Current	$	76,842	$	80,859	$	82,878
Deferred	21,682		75,044		(24,087		)
Total income tax provision	$	98,524	$	155,903	$	58,791

The following table presents a reconciliation between the statutory federal income tax rate and the Company’s effective federal income tax rate:



	Year Ended December 31,
	2015		2014		2013
Statutory federal income tax rate	35.0	%	35.0	%	35.0	%
Income tax effect of:
Investment income not subject to federal tax	(3.0	)%	(1.8	)%	(4.6	)%
Tax credits	(0.2	)%	(0.3	)%	(2.0	)%
State income taxes, net of federal benefit	3.2	%	1.0	%	3.3	%
Income tax contingency provisions	—	%	(1.2	)%	(0.4	)%
Other, net	(0.9	)%	0.2	%	—	%
Effective federal income tax rate	34.1	%	32.9	%	31.3	%

A reconciliation of unrecognized tax benefits is as follows:



	Year Ended December 31,
	2015			2014			2013
Balance, beginning of year	$	26,890		$	21,154		$	25,850
Additions to tax positions in the current year	1,383			13,931			—
Additions to tax positions in the prior year	50			—			1,497
Reductions to tax positions in the prior year	—			—			(180		)
Reductions to tax positions from statutes expiring	(5,230		)	(8,195		)	(6,013		)
Balance, end of year	$	23,093		$	26,890		$	21,154

There were no tax benefits included in the unrecognized tax benefits of $23,093 at December 31, 2015, that would impact the annual effective tax rate. The Company anticipates a decrease in its unrecognized tax benefits of $4,500 to $5,500 in the next twelve months, primarily due to changes in the composition of the consolidated group.

The Company recognizes accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits in current income tax expense. The Company recognized decreases of $193, $2,916, and $286 in interest and penalties related to the uncertain tax positions during the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014, and 2013, respectively. The Company had approximately $1,017 and $1,210 accrued for the payment of interest and penalties at December 31, 2015, and 2014, respectively.

The Company files income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction and various states. With few exceptions, the Company is no longer subject to U.S. federal income tax examinations by tax authorities for years 2011 and prior. Tax years 2012 through 2014 are open to federal examination by the I.R.S. The Company does not expect significant increases or decreases to unrecognized tax benefits relating to federal, state, or local audits.

Deferred income taxes represent the tax effect of the differences between the book and tax bases of assets and liabilities. The tax effect of temporary differences, which give rise to the deferred tax assets and liabilities, is as follows:



	December 31,
	2015				2014
	Deferred		Deferred		Deferred		Deferred
	tax asset		tax liability		tax asset		tax liability
Policyholder reserves	$	—	$	262,822	$	—	$	255,926
Deferred acquisition costs	—		8,533		2,467		—
Investment assets	—		221,303		—		426,477
Policyholder dividends	8,919		—		10,002		—
Net operating loss carryforward	113,637		—		122,177		—
Pension plan accrued benefit liability	79,945		—		84,351		—
Goodwill	—		33,034		—		26,022
Experience rated refunds	12,673		—		13,431		—
Tax credits	154,017		—		149,516		—
Other	19,385		—		11,865		—
Total deferred taxes	$	388,576	$	525,692	$	393,809	$	708,425

The deferred tax liability amounts presented for investment assets above include $171,780 and $381,838 related to the net unrealized losses (gains) on the Company’s investments, which are classified as available-for-sale at December 31, 2015, and 2014, respectively.

The Company, together with certain of its subsidiaries, and Lifeco U.S. have entered into an income tax allocation agreement whereby Lifeco U.S. files a consolidated federal income tax return. Under the agreement, these companies are responsible for and will receive the benefits of any income tax liability or benefit computed on a separate tax return basis.

The Company has federal net operating loss carry forwards generated by a subsidiary that is included in the Lifeco U.S. consolidated federal income tax return. As of December 31, 2015, the subsidiary had net operating loss carry forwards expiring as follows:



Year	Amount
2021	$	37,747
2022	136,796
2023	81,693
2028	2,215
Total	$	258,451

During the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014, and 2013, the Company generated $3,295, $15,506, and $25,013 of Guaranteed Federal Low Income Housing tax credit carryforwards, respectively. As of December 31, 2015, the total credit carryforward for Low Income Housing is $142,878. These credits will begin to expire in 2030.

Included in due from parent and affiliates at December 31, 2015, and 2014 is $11,790 and $13,400, respectively, of income taxes receivable primarily from Lifeco U.S. related to the consolidated income tax return filed by the Company and certain subsidiaries.

Included in the consolidated balance sheets at December 31, 2015, and 2014 is $7,721 and $7,176, respectively, of income taxes receivable in other assets primarily related to the separate state income tax returns filed by certain subsidiaries.