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Income Taxes
3 Months Ended
Mar. 30, 2013
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Taxes
Income Taxes

We determine the tax provision for interim periods using an estimate of our annual effective tax rate, adjusted for discrete items, if any, that are taken into account in the relevant period. Each quarter we update our estimate of the annual effective tax rate, and if our estimated tax rate changes, we make a cumulative adjustment.

Our effective tax rate was 31.1% and 31.8% for the first three months of 2013 and 2012, respectively.

In January 2013, the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (Act) became law. The Act reinstates the research and development tax credit retroactively from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2013. In the first quarter of 2013, we recognized the research and development tax credit related to 2012 as a favorable discrete item. Absent discrete items, our effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2013 would be approximately 34%. Research and development tax credits generated in 2013 are being recognized pro-rata as a component of the overall 2013 effective tax rate.