Income Taxes

3 Months Ended

Mar. 21, 2020

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

Income Taxes

Income Taxes

Tax Cuts and Jobs Act

During the fourth quarter of 2017, the TCJ Act was enacted in the United States. The related provisional measurement period allowed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ended in the fourth quarter of 2018. While our accounting for the recorded impact of the TCJ Act was deemed to be complete, additional guidance issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) impacted our recorded amounts after December 29, 2018. 

There were no tax amounts recognized in the 12 weeks ended March 21, 2020 related to the TCJ Act. In the 12 weeks ended March 23, 2019, we recognized tax benefits of $29 million ($0.02 per share) related to the TCJ Act. 

Other Tax Matters

On May 19, 2019, a public referendum held in Switzerland passed the Federal Act on Tax Reform and AHV Financing (TRAF), effective January 1, 2020. There were no income tax adjustments recorded in the 12 weeks ended March 21, 2020 related to the TRAF. Enactment of additional TRAF provisions subsequent to March 21, 2020 is expected to result in adjustments to our financial statements and related disclosures in future periods. The future impact of the TRAF cannot currently be reasonably estimated; we will continue to monitor and assess the impact the TRAF may have on our business and financial results.

For further information and discussion of the impacts of the TCJ Act and the TRAF, refer to Note 5 to our consolidated financial statements in our 2019 Form 10-K.

Subsequent to the end of our first quarter, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) was enacted on March 27, 2020 in the United States. The CARES Act and related notices include several significant provisions, including delaying certain payroll tax payments, mandatory transition tax payments under the TCJ Act, and estimated income tax payments that we expect to defer to future periods. We do not currently expect the CARES Act to have a material impact on our financial results, including on our annual estimated effective tax rate, or on our liquidity. We will continue to monitor and assess the impact the CARES Act and similar legislation in other countries may have on our business and financial results.