Income Taxes

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2019

The following table presents the components of income tax expense for continuing operations, discontinued operations, noncontrolling interests and the Company:



	Three months ended March 31,
	2019			2018
	(In thousands)
Income from continuing operations:
Income before income taxes	$	24,459		$	28,064
Income tax expense	4,917			6,026
Net income from continuing operations	$	19,542		$	22,038
Effective tax rate, continuing operations	20.1		%	21.5		%

Income from discontinued operations:
Income before income taxes	$	—		$	2,388
Income tax expense	—			690
Net income from discontinued operations	$	—		$	1,698
Effective tax rate, discontinued operations	—		%	28.9		%

Less: Income attributable to noncontrolling interests:
Income before income taxes	$	100		$	1,050
Income tax expense	—			—
Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	$	100		$	1,050
Effective tax rate, noncontrolling interests	—		%	—		%

Income attributable to the Company
Income before income taxes	$	24,359		$	29,402
Income tax expense	4,917			6,716
Net income attributable to the Company	$	19,442		$	22,686
Effective tax rate attributable to the Company	20.2		%	22.8		%

The effective tax rate for continuing operations for the three months ended March 31, 2019 of 20.1%, with related tax expense of $4.9 million, was calculated based on a projected 2019 annual effective tax rate. The effective tax rate was less than the statutory rate of 21% due primarily to earnings from tax-exempt investments and income tax credits. These savings were partially offset by state and local income taxes.

The effective tax rate for continuing operations for the three months ended March 31, 2018 of 21.5%, with related tax expense of $6.0 million, was calculated based on a projected 2018 annual effective tax rate. The effective tax rate was more than the statutory rate of 21% due primarily to state and local income taxes and the accounting for investments in affordable housing projects. These items were partially offset by earnings from tax-exempt investments, income tax credits, and income attributable to noncontrolling interests.

The effective tax rate for continuing operations for the three months ended March 31, 2019 is less than the effective tax rate for the same period in 2018 primarily as a result of increased earnings from tax-exempt investments.