Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2018
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	(1) Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc. (the Company) through its subsidiary, Hawthorn Bank (the Bank), provides a broad range of banking services to individual and corporate customers located within the communities in and surrounding Jefferson City, Columbia, Clinton, Warsaw, Springfield, and the greater Kansas City metropolitan area. The Company is subject to competition from other financial and nonfinancial institutions providing financial products. Additionally, the Company and its subsidiaries are subject to the regulations of certain regulatory agencies and undergo periodic examinations by those regulatory agencies. The accompanying consolidated financial statements of the Company have been prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP). The preparation of the consolidated financial statements includes all adjustments that, in the opinion of management, are necessary in order to make those statements not misleading. Management is required to make estimates and assumptions, including the determination of the allowance for loan losses, real estate acquired in connection with foreclosure or in satisfaction of loans, and fair values of investment securities available-for-sale that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. The Company's management has evaluated and did not identify any subsequent events or transactions requiring recognition or disclosure in the consolidated financial statements. The significant accounting policies used by the Company in the preparation of the consolidated financial statements are summarized below: Principles of Consolidation In December of 2008, the Company formed Hawthorn Real Estate, LLC, (the Real Estate Company); a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company. In December of 2017, the Company formed Hawthorn Risk Management, Inc., (the Insurance Captive); a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company. The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company, Hawthorn Bank (the Bank), the Real Estate Company, and the Insurance Captive. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Loans Loans that the Company has the intent and ability to hold for the foreseeable future or to maturity are held for investment at their stated unpaid principal balance amount less unearned income and the allowance for loan losses. Income on loans is accrued on a simple‑interest basis. Loan origination fees and certain direct costs are deferred and recognized over the life of the loan as an adjustment to yield. Loans Held for Sale Loans originated, primarily one-to-four family residential mortgage loans, with the intent to be sold in the secondary market are classified as held for sale and are accounted for at the lower of adjusted cost or fair value. Adjusted cost reflects the funded loan amount and any loan origination costs and fees. In order to manage the risk associated with such activities, the Company upon locking in an interest rate with the borrower enters into an agreement to sell such loans in the secondary market. Loans held for sale are typically sold with servicing rights retained and without recourse except for normal and customary representation and warranty provisions. Mortgage loans held for sale were $583,000 at December 31, 2018 compared to $383,000 loans held for sale at December 31, 2017. Impaired Loans A loan is considered impaired when it is probable the Company will be unable to collect all amounts due, both principal and interest, according to the contractual terms of the loan agreement. Included in impaired loans are all non-accrual loans and loans whose terms have been modified in a troubled debt restructuring. Impaired loans are individually evaluated for impairment based on fair values of the underlying collateral, obtained through independent appraisals or internal valuations for a collateral dependent loan or by discounting the total expected future cash flows. Non-Accrual Loans Loans are placed on nonaccrual status when management believes that the borrower's financial condition, after consideration of business conditions and collection efforts, is such that collection of interest is doubtful. Loans that are contractually 90 days past due as to principal and/or interest payments are generally placed on non-accrual, unless they are both well-secured and in the process of collection. Subsequent interest payments received on such loans are applied to principal if doubt exists as to the collectability of such principal; otherwise, such receipts are recorded as interest income on a cash basis. A loan remains on nonaccrual status until the loan is current as to payment of both principal and interest and/or the borrower demonstrates the ability to pay and remain current. Restructured Loans A loan is accounted for as a troubled debt restructuring (TDR) if the Company, for economic or legal reasons related to the borrowers' financial difficulties, grants a concession to the borrower that it would not otherwise consider. A TDR typically involves (1) modification of terms such as a reduction of the stated interest rate, loan principal, accrued interest, or an extended maturity date (2) a loan renewal at a stated interest rate lower than the current market rate for a new loan with similar risk, or (3) debt that was not reaffirmed in bankruptcy. Nonperforming TDRs are returned to performing status once the borrower demonstrates the ability to pay under the terms of the restructured note through a sustained period of repayment performance, which is generally six months. The Company includes all performing and non-performing TDRs in the impaired and non-performing asset totals. The Company measures the impairment loss of a TDR in the same manner as described below. TDRs which are performing under their contractual terms continue to accrue interest which is recognized in current earnings. Allowance for Loan Losses Management has identified the accounting policy related to the allowance for loan losses as critical to the understanding of the Company's results of operations, since the application of this policy requires significant management assumptions and estimates that could result in materially different amounts to be reported if conditions or underlying circumstances were to change. The fair value of impaired loans deemed collateral dependent, for purposes of the measurement of the impairment loss, can be subject to changing market conditions, supply and demand, condition of the collateral and other factors over time. Such volatility can have an impact on the financial performance of the Company. Loans, or portions of loans, are charged off to the extent deemed uncollectible or a loss is confirmed. When loans become 90 days past due, they are generally placed on nonaccrual status or charged off unless extenuating circumstances justify leaving the loan on accrual basis. When loans reach 120 days past due and there is little likelihood of repayment, the uncollectible portion of the loans are charged off. Loan charge-offs reduce the allowance for loan losses, and recoveries of loans previously charged off are added back to the allowance. If management determines that it is probable that all amounts due on a loan will not be collected under the original terms of the loan agreement, the loan is considered to be impaired. The specific reserve component applies to loans evaluated individually for impairment. The net carrying value of impaired loans is generally based on the fair values of collateral obtained through independent appraisals and/or internal evaluations, or by discounting the total expected future cash flows. Once the impairment amount is calculated, a specific reserve allocation is recorded. The incurred loss component of the general reserve, or loans collectively evaluated for impairment, is determined by applying loss rates to pools of loans by loan type. Loans not individually evaluated are aggregated by risk characteristics and reserves are recorded using a consistent methodology that considers historical loan loss experience by loan type. The Company believes that the five-year look-back period provides a representative historical loss period in the current economic environment. These historical loss rates for each risk group are used as the starting point to determine loss rates for measurement purposes. The historical loan loss rates are multiplied by loss emergence periods (LEP) which represent the estimated time period between a borrower first experiencing financial difficulty and the recognition of a loss. The Company's methodology includes qualitative risk factors that allow management to adjust its estimates of losses based on the most recent information available and to address other limitations in the quantitative component that is based on historical loss rates. Such risk factors are generally reviewed and updated quarterly, as appropriate, and are adjusted to reflect changes in national and local economic conditions and developments, the nature, volume and terms of loans in the portfolio, including changes in volume and severity of past due loans, the volume of nonaccrual loans, and the volume and severity of adversely classified or graded loans, loan concentrations, assessment of trends in collateral values, assessment of changes in the quality of the Company's internal loan review department, and changes in lending policies and procedures, including underwriting standards and collections, charge-off and recovery practices. Certificates of Deposit in other banks Certificates of deposit are investments made by the Company with other financial institutions, in amounts less than $250,000 each in order to qualify for FDIC insurance coverage, that are carried at cost which approximates fair values. Investment Securities Available for sale securities The largest component of the Company's investment portfolio consists of debt securities which are classified as available-for-sale and are carried at fair value. Changes in fair value, excluding certain losses associated with other-than-temporary impairment, are reported in other comprehensive income, net of taxes, a component of stockholders' equity. Securities are periodically evaluated for other-than-temporary impairment in accordance with guidance provided in the FASB ASC Topic 320, Investments – Debt Securities. For those securities with other-than-temporary impairment, the entire loss in fair value is required to be recognized in current earnings if the Company intends to sell the securities or believes it more likely than not that it will be required to sell the security before the anticipated recovery. If neither condition is met, but the Company does not expect to recover the amortized cost basis, the Company determines whether a credit loss has occurred, which is then recognized in current earnings. The amount of the total other-than-temporary impairment related to all other factors is recognized in other comprehensive income. Premiums and discounts are amortized using the interest method over the lives of the respective securities, with consideration of historical and estimated prepayment rates for mortgage‑backed securities, as an adjustment to yield. Dividend and interest income are recognized when earned. Realized gains and losses for securities classified as available‑for‑sale are included in earnings based on the specific identification method for determining the cost of securities sold. Other investment securities Other investment securities include equity securities with readily determinable fair values and other investment securities that do not have readily determinable fair values. Investments in Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) stock, and Midwest Independent Bank (MIB) bankers bank stock, that do not have readily determinable fair values, are required for membership in those organizations. Equity securities with readily determinable fair values are recorded at fair value, with changes in fair value reflected in earnings. Equity securities that do not have readily determinable fair values are carried at cost and are periodically assessed for impairment. Capital Stock of the Federal Home Loan Bank The Bank, as a member of the Federal Home Loan Bank System administered by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, is required to maintain an investment in the capital stock of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines (FHLB) in an amount equal to 12 basis points of the Bank's year-end total assets plus 4.00% of advances from the FHLB to the Bank. These investments are recorded at cost, which represents redemption value. Premises and Equipment Premises and equipment are stated at cost, less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation applicable to buildings and improvements and furniture and equipment is charged to expense using straight-line and accelerated methods over the estimated useful lives of the assets. Such lives are estimated to be 5 to 40 years for buildings and improvements and 3 to 15 years for furniture and equipment. Maintenance and repairs are charged to expense as incurred. Mortgage Servicing Rights The Company originates and sells residential mortgage loans in the secondary market and typically retains the right to service the loans sold. Servicing involves the collection of payments from individual borrowers and the distribution of those payments to the investors or master servicer. Upon a sale of mortgage loans for which servicing rights are retained, the retained mortgage servicing rights asset is capitalized at the fair value of future net cash flows expected to be realized for performing servicing activities. Mortgage servicing rights are carried at fair value in the consolidated balance sheet with changes in the fair value recognized in earnings. As most servicing rights do not trade in an active market with readily observable prices, the Company determines the fair value of mortgage servicing rights by estimating the fair value of the future cash flows associated with the mortgage loans being serviced. Key assumptions used in measuring the fair value of mortgage servicing rights include, but are not limited to, prepayment speeds, discount rates, delinquencies, ancillary income, and cost to service. These assumptions are validated on a periodic basis. The fair value is validated on a quarterly basis with an independent third party valuation specialist firm. In addition to the changes in fair value of the mortgage servicing rights, the Company also recorded loan servicing fee income as part of real estate servicing fees, net in the consolidated statements of income. Loan servicing fee income represents revenue earned for servicing mortgage loans. The servicing fees are based on contractual percentage of the outstanding principal balance and recognized as revenue as the related mortgage payments are collected. Corresponding loan servicing costs are charged to expense as incurred. Other Real Estate Owned and Repossessed Assets Other real estate owned and repossessed assets consist of loan collateral that has been repossessed through foreclosure. This collateral is comprised of commercial and residential real estate and other non-real estate property, including autos, manufactured homes, and construction equipment. Other real estate owned assets are initially recorded as held for sale at the fair value of the collateral less estimated selling costs. Any adjustment is recorded as a charge-off against the allowance for loan losses. The Company relies on external appraisals and assessment of property values by internal staff. In the case of non-real estate collateral, reliance is placed on a variety of sources, including external estimates of value and judgment based on experience and expertise of internal specialists. Subsequent to foreclosure, valuations are updated periodically, and the assets may be written down to reflect a new cost basis. The valuation write-downs are recorded as other non-interest expense. The Company establishes a valuation allowance related to other real estate owned and repossessed assets on an asset-by-asset basis. The valuation allowance is created during the holding period when the fair value less cost to sell is lower than the cost of the asset. Pension Plan The Company provides a noncontributory defined benefit pension plan for all full-time employees. The benefits are based on age, years of service and the level of compensation during the employees highest ten years of compensation before retirement. Net periodic costs are recognized as employees render the services necessary to earn the retirement benefits. The Company records annual amounts relating to its pension plan based on calculations that incorporate various actuarial and other assumptions including discount rates, mortality, assumed rates of return, compensation increases, and turnover rates. The Company reviews its assumptions on an annual basis and may make modifications to the assumptions based on current rates and trends when it is appropriate to do so. The Company believes that the assumptions utilized in recording its obligations under its plan are reasonable based on its experience and market conditions. The Company follows authoritative guidance included in the FASB ASC Topic 715, Compensation – Retirement Plans under the subtopic Employers' Accounting for Defined Benefit Pension and Other Postretirement Plans. ASC Topic 715 requires an employer to recognize the overfunded or underfunded status of a defined benefit postretirement plan (other than a multiemployer plan) as an asset or liability in its consolidated balance sheet and to recognize changes in the funded status in the year in which the changes occur through comprehensive income. This guidance also requires an employer to measure the funded status of a plan as of the date of its fiscal year-end, with limited exceptions. Additional disclosures are required to provide users with an understanding of how investment allocation decisions are made, major categories of plan assets, and fair value measurement of plan assets as defined in ASC Topic 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures. Income Taxes Income taxes are accounted for under the asset / liability method by recognizing the amount of taxes payable or refundable for the current period and deferred tax assets and liabilities for future tax consequences of events that have been recognized in the Company's financial statements or tax returns. Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are provided as temporary differences between the tax basis of an asset or liability and its reported amount in the consolidated financial statements at the enacted tax rate expected to be applied in the period the deferred tax item is expected to be realized. A valuation allowance, if needed, reduces deferred tax assets to the expected amount most likely to be realized. Realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon the generation of a sufficient level of future taxable income and recoverable taxes paid in prior years. The federal corporate income tax rate declined from 34% to 21% effective January 1, 2018 as a result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, (Tax Act). The Company's tax rate is lower than the federal statutory rate primarily as a result of tax-exempt income, the release of the valuation allowance related to capital loss carryforwards, a pension contribution made during the second quarter of 2018 that was attributable to the 2017 plan year, and the Company's additional tax planning initiatives. The provisional adjustments recorded in the fourth quarter of 2017 related to the enactment of the Tax Act were finalized during the third quarter of 2018 with the filing of the Company's 2017 tax return, within the one-year measurement period provided under Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118 in regards to the application of FASB's ASC Topic 740, Income Taxes. The Tax Act resulted in stranded income tax effects in accumulated other comprehensive loss, for which new accounting guidance was issued under ASU 2018-02. This guidance allowed the Company to early adopt and retrospectively apply the reclassification of stranded income tax effects from accumulated other comprehensive loss to retained earnings. As of December 31, 2017, the Company reclassified $1.2 million from accumulated other comprehensive loss to retained earnings resulting from the Tax Act. A tax position is initially recognized in the financial statements when it is more likely than not the position will be sustained upon examination by the tax authorities. Such tax positions are initially and subsequently measured as the largest amount of tax benefit that is greater than 50% likely of being realized upon ultimate settlement with the tax authority assuming full knowledge of the position and all relevant facts. Penalties and interest incurred under the applicable tax law are classified as income tax expense. The Company has not recognized any tax liabilities or any interest or penalties in income tax expense related to uncertain tax positions as of December 31, 2018, 2017, and 2016. Trust Department Property held by the Bank in a fiduciary or agency capacity for customers is not included in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets, since such items are not assets of the Company. Trust department income is recognized on the accrual basis. Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows For the purpose of the consolidated statements of cash flows, cash and cash equivalents consist of short-term federal funds sold and securities sold or purchased under agreements to resell, overnight interest earning deposits with banks, cash, and due from banks. Stock-Based Compensation The Company's stock-based employee compensation plan (the plan) is described in Note 13, Stock Compensation. In accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718, Compensation – Stock Compensation, the Company measures the cost of the stock-based compensation based on the grant-date fair value of the award, recognizing the cost over the requisite service period. The fair value of an award is estimated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. The Company adopted ASU 2016-09, Improvements to Employee Share-Based Payment Accounting, on January 1, 2017 and elected to recognize forfeitures as they occur. Prior to the adoption of the ASU, the expense was recognized based on an estimation of the number of awards for which the requisite service is expected to be rendered, and is included in salaries and employee benefits in the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Income. The plan expired on February 28, 2010, except as to outstanding options under the plan, and no further options may be granted pursuant to the plan. All options were fully expensed as of September 30, 2017. Treasury Stock The purchase of the Company's common stock is recorded at cost. Purchases of the stock are made both in the open market and through negotiated private purchases based on market prices. At the date of subsequent reissue, the treasury stock account is reduced by the cost associated with such stock on a first-in-first-out basis. Gains on the sale of treasury stock are credited to additional paid-in-capital. Losses on the sale of treasury stock are charged to additional paid-in-capital to the extent of pervious gains, otherwise charged to retained earnings. Stock Dividend On July 1, 2018, the Company paid a special stock dividend of four percent to shareholders of record at the close of business on June 15, 2018. For all periods presented, share information, including basic and diluted earnings per share, has been adjusted retroactively to reflect this change. Summary of Recent Transactions and Events On February 8, 2019, Hawthorn Bank, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc., completed the sale of its branch located in Branson, Missouri to Branson Bank, Branson, Missouri. Total deposits transferred were approximately $10.6 million while loans assigned to the branch were retained. The Branson branch land and building were considered assets held for sale at December 31, 2018. The sale is expected to result in a pre-tax gain of approximately $2.1 million, $1.7 million related to the land and building, subject to certain future adjustments required in the definitive agreement. Reclassifications Certain prior year information has been reclassified to conform to the 2018 presentation. The following represents significant new accounting principles adopted in 2018: Revenue from Contracts with Customers On January 1, 2018, the Company adopted ASU No. 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606) and all subsequent ASUs that modified Topic 606. The implementation of the new standard did not have a material impact on the measurement or recognition of revenue; as such, a cumulative effect adjustment to opening retained earnings was not deemed necessary. Results for reporting periods beginning after January 1, 2018 are presented under Topic 606, while prior period amounts were not adjusted and continue to be reported in accordance with historic accounting under Topic 605. Topic 606 does not apply to revenue associated with financial instruments, including revenue from loans and securities. In addition, certain noninterest income streams such as fees associated with mortgage servicing rights, financial guarantees, derivatives, and certain credit card fees are not in scope of the new guidance. Topic 606 is applicable to noninterest revenue streams such as trust department revenue, service charges and fees, debit card income, ATM surcharge income, and other real estate owned sales. However, the recognition of these revenue streams did not change significantly upon adoption of Topic 606. Noninterest revenue streams within the scope of Topic 606 are discussed in Footnote 16. Financial Instruments The FASB issued ASU 2016-01, Recognition and Measurement of Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities, in January 2016. The amendments require all equity investments to be measured at fair value with changes in the fair value recognized through net income, other than those accounted for under the equity method of accounting or those that result in the consolidation of the investee. Additionally, these amendments require presentation in other comprehensive income the portion of the total change in the fair value of a liability resulting from a change in the instrument-specific credit risk for those liabilities measured at fair value. The amendments also require use of the exit price notion when measuring the fair value of financial instruments for disclosure purposes. These amendments are effective for interim and annual periods beginning January 1, 2018. The adoption of the ASU did not have a significant effect on the Company's consolidated financial statements. The FASB issued ASU 2018-04, Investments - Debt Securities (Topic 320) and Regulated Operations (Topic 980): The amendment in this ASU adds, amends and supersedes various paragraphs that contain SEC guidance in ASC 320, Investments-Debt Securities and ASC 980, Regulated Operations. The amendments in this ASU are effective when a registrant adopts ASU 2016-01, which for the Company was January 1, 2018. This amendment did not have a significant effect on the Company's consolidated financial statements. Liabilities The FASB issued ASU 2016-04, Recognition of Breakage for Certain Prepaid Stored-Value Products, in March 2016, in order to address current and potential future diversity in practice related to the derecognition of a prepaid stored-value product liability. Such products include prepaid gift cards issued on a specific payment network and redeemable at network-accepting merchant locations, prepaid telecommunication cards, and traveler's checks. The amendments require that the portion of the dollar value of prepaid stored-value products that is ultimately unredeemed (that is, the breakage) be accounted for consistent with the breakage guidance for stored-value product transactions provided in ASC Topic 606 - Revenue from Contracts with Customers. These amendments are effective for interim and annual periods beginning January 1, 2018. The adoption of the ASU did not have a significant effect on the Company's consolidated financial statements. Pension The FASB issued ASU 2017-07, Improving the Presentation of Net Periodic Pension Cost and Net Periodic Postretirement Benefit Cost in March 2017. Under the new guidance, the Company presents the service cost component of the net periodic benefit cost in the same income statement line item (e.g., Salaries and Benefits) as other employee compensation costs arising from services rendered during the period. In addition, only the service cost component will be eligible for capitalization in assets. The Company presents the other components separately (e.g., Other Noninterest Expense) from the line item that includes the service cost. The Company utilizes the ASU's practical expedient allowing entities to estimate amounts for comparative periods using the information previously disclosed in their pension and other postretirement benefit plan footnote. The amendments were effective January 1, 2018 and did not have a significant effect on the Company's consolidated financial statements. See Note 12 for further discussion.

(1) Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc. (the Company) through its subsidiary, Hawthorn Bank (the Bank), provides a broad range of banking services to individual and corporate customers located within the communities in and surrounding Jefferson City, Columbia, Clinton, Warsaw, Springfield, and the greater Kansas City metropolitan area. The Company is subject to competition from other financial and nonfinancial institutions providing financial products. Additionally, the Company and its subsidiaries are subject to the regulations of certain regulatory agencies and undergo periodic examinations by those regulatory agencies.

The accompanying consolidated financial statements of the Company have been prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP). The preparation of the consolidated financial statements includes all adjustments that, in the opinion of management, are necessary in order to make those statements not misleading. Management is required to make estimates and assumptions, including the determination of the allowance for loan losses, real estate acquired in connection with foreclosure or in satisfaction of loans, and fair values of investment securities available-for-sale that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. The Company's management has evaluated and did not identify any subsequent events or transactions requiring recognition or disclosure in the consolidated financial statements.

The significant accounting policies used by the Company in the preparation of the consolidated financial statements are summarized below:

Principles of Consolidation

In December of 2008, the Company formed Hawthorn Real Estate, LLC, (the Real Estate Company); a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company. In December of 2017, the Company formed Hawthorn Risk Management, Inc., (the Insurance Captive); a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company. The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company, Hawthorn Bank (the Bank), the Real Estate Company, and the Insurance Captive. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

Loans

Loans that the Company has the intent and ability to hold for the foreseeable future or to maturity are held for investment at their stated unpaid principal balance amount less unearned income and the allowance for loan losses. Income on loans is accrued on a simple‑interest basis. Loan origination fees and certain direct costs are deferred and recognized over the life of the loan as an adjustment to yield.

Loans Held for Sale

Loans originated, primarily one-to-four family residential mortgage loans, with the intent to be sold in the secondary market are classified as held for sale and are accounted for at the lower of adjusted cost or fair value. Adjusted cost reflects the funded loan amount and any loan origination costs and fees. In order to manage the risk associated with such activities, the Company upon locking in an interest rate with the borrower enters into an agreement to sell such loans in the secondary market. Loans held for sale are typically sold with servicing rights retained and without recourse except for normal and customary representation and warranty provisions. Mortgage loans held for sale were $583,000 at December 31, 2018 compared to $383,000 loans held for sale at December 31, 2017.

Impaired Loans

A loan is considered impaired when it is probable the Company will be unable to collect all amounts due, both principal and interest, according to the contractual terms of the loan agreement. Included in impaired loans are all non-accrual loans and loans whose terms have been modified in a troubled debt restructuring. Impaired loans are individually evaluated for impairment based on fair values of the underlying collateral, obtained through independent appraisals or internal valuations for a collateral dependent loan or by discounting the total expected future cash flows.

Non-Accrual Loans

Loans are placed on nonaccrual status when management believes that the borrower's financial condition, after consideration of business conditions and collection efforts, is such that collection of interest is doubtful. Loans that are contractually 90 days past due as to principal and/or interest payments are generally placed on non-accrual, unless they are both well-secured and in the process of collection. Subsequent interest payments received on such loans are applied to principal if doubt exists as to the collectability of such principal; otherwise, such receipts are recorded as interest income on a cash basis. A loan remains on nonaccrual status until the loan is current as to payment of both principal and interest and/or the borrower demonstrates the ability to pay and remain current.

Restructured Loans

A loan is accounted for as a troubled debt restructuring (TDR) if the Company, for economic or legal reasons related to the borrowers' financial difficulties, grants a concession to the borrower that it would not otherwise consider. A TDR typically involves (1) modification of terms such as a reduction of the stated interest rate, loan principal, accrued interest, or an extended maturity date (2) a loan renewal at a stated interest rate lower than the current market rate for a new loan with similar risk, or (3) debt that was not reaffirmed in bankruptcy. Nonperforming TDRs are returned to performing status once the borrower demonstrates the ability to pay under the terms of the restructured note through a sustained period of repayment performance, which is generally six months. The Company includes all performing and non-performing TDRs in the impaired and non-performing asset totals. The Company measures the impairment loss of a TDR in the same manner as described below. TDRs which are performing under their contractual terms continue to accrue interest which is recognized in current earnings.

Allowance for Loan Losses

Management has identified the accounting policy related to the allowance for loan losses as critical to the understanding of the Company's results of operations, since the application of this policy requires significant management assumptions and estimates that could result in materially different amounts to be reported if conditions or underlying circumstances were to change. The fair value of impaired loans deemed collateral dependent, for purposes of the measurement of the impairment loss, can be subject to changing market conditions, supply and demand, condition of the collateral and other factors over time. Such volatility can have an impact on the financial performance of the Company.

Loans, or portions of loans, are charged off to the extent deemed uncollectible or a loss is confirmed. When loans become 90 days past due, they are generally placed on nonaccrual status or charged off unless extenuating circumstances justify leaving the loan on accrual basis. When loans reach 120 days past due and there is little likelihood of repayment, the uncollectible portion of the loans are charged off. Loan charge-offs reduce the allowance for loan losses, and recoveries of loans previously charged off are added back to the allowance. If management determines that it is probable that all amounts due on a loan will not be collected under the original terms of the loan agreement, the loan is considered to be impaired.

The specific reserve component applies to loans evaluated individually for impairment. The net carrying value of impaired loans is generally based on the fair values of collateral obtained through independent appraisals and/or internal evaluations, or by discounting the total expected future cash flows. Once the impairment amount is calculated, a specific reserve allocation is recorded.

The incurred loss component of the general reserve, or loans collectively evaluated for impairment, is determined by applying loss rates to pools of loans by loan type. Loans not individually evaluated are aggregated by risk characteristics and reserves are recorded using a consistent methodology that considers historical loan loss experience by loan type. The Company believes that the five-year look-back period provides a representative historical loss period in the current economic environment. These historical loss rates for each risk group are used as the starting point to determine loss rates for measurement purposes. The historical loan loss rates are multiplied by loss emergence periods (LEP) which represent the estimated time period between a borrower first experiencing financial difficulty and the recognition of a loss.

The Company's methodology includes qualitative risk factors that allow management to adjust its estimates of losses based on the most recent information available and to address other limitations in the quantitative component that is based on historical loss rates. Such risk factors are generally reviewed and updated quarterly, as appropriate, and are adjusted to reflect changes in national and local economic conditions and developments, the nature, volume and terms of loans in the portfolio, including changes in volume and severity of past due loans, the volume of nonaccrual loans, and the volume and severity of adversely classified or graded loans, loan concentrations, assessment of trends in collateral values, assessment of changes in the quality of the Company's internal loan review department, and changes in lending policies and procedures, including underwriting standards and collections, charge-off and recovery practices.

Certificates of Deposit in other banks

Certificates of deposit are investments made by the Company with other financial institutions, in amounts less than $250,000 each in order to qualify for FDIC insurance coverage, that are carried at cost which approximates fair values.

Investment Securities

Available for sale securities

The largest component of the Company's investment portfolio consists of debt securities which are classified as available-for-sale and are carried at fair value. Changes in fair value, excluding certain losses associated with other-than-temporary impairment, are reported in other comprehensive income, net of taxes, a component of stockholders' equity. Securities are periodically evaluated for other-than-temporary impairment in accordance with guidance provided in the FASB ASC Topic 320, Investments – Debt Securities. For those securities with other-than-temporary impairment, the entire loss in fair value is required to be recognized in current earnings if the Company intends to sell the securities or believes it more likely than not that it will be required to sell the security before the anticipated recovery. If neither condition is met, but the Company does not expect to recover the amortized cost basis, the Company determines whether a credit loss has occurred, which is then recognized in current earnings. The amount of the total other-than-temporary impairment related to all other factors is recognized in other comprehensive income.

Premiums and discounts are amortized using the interest method over the lives of the respective securities, with consideration of historical and estimated prepayment rates for mortgage‑backed securities, as an adjustment to yield. Dividend and interest income are recognized when earned. Realized gains and losses for securities classified as available‑for‑sale are included in earnings based on the specific identification method for determining the cost of securities sold.

Other investment securities

Other investment securities include equity securities with readily determinable fair values and other investment securities that do not have readily determinable fair values. Investments in Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) stock, and Midwest Independent Bank (MIB) bankers bank stock, that do not have readily determinable fair values, are required for membership in those organizations.

Equity securities with readily determinable fair values are recorded at fair value, with changes in fair value reflected in earnings. Equity securities that do not have readily determinable fair values are carried at cost and are periodically assessed for impairment.

Capital Stock of the Federal Home Loan Bank

The Bank, as a member of the Federal Home Loan Bank System administered by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, is required to maintain an investment in the capital stock of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines (FHLB) in an amount equal to 12 basis points of the Bank's year-end total assets plus 4.00% of advances from the FHLB to the Bank. These investments are recorded at cost, which represents redemption value.

Premises and Equipment

Premises and equipment are stated at cost, less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation applicable to buildings and improvements and furniture and equipment is charged to expense using straight-line and accelerated methods over the estimated useful lives of the assets. Such lives are estimated to be 5 to 40 years for buildings and improvements and 3 to 15 years for furniture and equipment. Maintenance and repairs are charged to expense as incurred.

Mortgage Servicing Rights

The Company originates and sells residential mortgage loans in the secondary market and typically retains the right to service the loans sold. Servicing involves the collection of payments from individual borrowers and the distribution of those payments to the investors or master servicer. Upon a sale of mortgage loans for which servicing rights are retained, the retained mortgage servicing rights asset is capitalized at the fair value of future net cash flows expected to be realized for performing servicing activities.

Mortgage servicing rights are carried at fair value in the consolidated balance sheet with changes in the fair value recognized in earnings. As most servicing rights do not trade in an active market with readily observable prices, the Company determines the fair value of mortgage servicing rights by estimating the fair value of the future cash flows associated with the mortgage loans being serviced. Key assumptions used in measuring the fair value of mortgage servicing rights include, but are not limited to, prepayment speeds, discount rates, delinquencies, ancillary income, and cost to service. These assumptions are validated on a periodic basis. The fair value is validated on a quarterly basis with an independent third party valuation specialist firm.

In addition to the changes in fair value of the mortgage servicing rights, the Company also recorded loan servicing fee income as part of real estate servicing fees, net in the consolidated statements of income. Loan servicing fee income represents revenue earned for servicing mortgage loans. The servicing fees are based on contractual percentage of the outstanding principal balance and recognized as revenue as the related mortgage payments are collected. Corresponding loan servicing costs are charged to expense as incurred.

Other Real Estate Owned and Repossessed Assets

Other real estate owned and repossessed assets consist of loan collateral that has been repossessed through foreclosure. This collateral is comprised of commercial and residential real estate and other non-real estate property, including autos, manufactured homes, and construction equipment. Other real estate owned assets are initially recorded as held for sale at the fair value of the collateral less estimated selling costs. Any adjustment is recorded as a charge-off against the allowance for loan losses. The Company relies on external appraisals and assessment of property values by internal staff. In the case of non-real estate collateral, reliance is placed on a variety of sources, including external estimates of value and judgment based on experience and expertise of internal specialists. Subsequent to foreclosure, valuations are updated periodically, and the assets may be written down to reflect a new cost basis. The valuation write-downs are recorded as other non-interest expense. The Company establishes a valuation allowance related to other real estate owned and repossessed assets on an asset-by-asset basis. The valuation allowance is created during the holding period when the fair value less cost to sell is lower than the cost of the asset.

Pension Plan

The Company provides a noncontributory defined benefit pension plan for all full-time employees. The benefits are based on age, years of service and the level of compensation during the employees highest ten years of compensation before retirement. Net periodic costs are recognized as employees render the services necessary to earn the retirement benefits. The Company records annual amounts relating to its pension plan based on calculations that incorporate various actuarial and other assumptions including discount rates, mortality, assumed rates of return, compensation increases, and turnover rates. The Company reviews its assumptions on an annual basis and may make modifications to the assumptions based on current rates and trends when it is appropriate to do so. The Company believes that the assumptions utilized in recording its obligations under its plan are reasonable based on its experience and market conditions.

The Company follows authoritative guidance included in the FASB ASC Topic 715, Compensation – Retirement Plans under the subtopic Employers' Accounting for Defined Benefit Pension and Other Postretirement Plans. ASC Topic 715 requires an employer to recognize the overfunded or underfunded status of a defined benefit postretirement plan (other than a multiemployer plan) as an asset or liability in its consolidated balance sheet and to recognize changes in the funded status in the year in which the changes occur through comprehensive income. This guidance also requires an employer to measure the funded status of a plan as of the date of its fiscal year-end, with limited exceptions. Additional disclosures are required to provide users with an understanding of how investment allocation decisions are made, major categories of plan assets, and fair value measurement of plan assets as defined in ASC Topic 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures.

Income Taxes

Income taxes are accounted for under the asset / liability method by recognizing the amount of taxes payable or refundable for the current period and deferred tax assets and liabilities for future tax consequences of events that have been recognized in the Company's financial statements or tax returns. Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are provided as temporary differences between the tax basis of an asset or liability and its reported amount in the consolidated financial statements at the enacted tax rate expected to be applied in the period the deferred tax item is expected to be realized. A valuation allowance, if needed, reduces deferred tax assets to the expected amount most likely to be realized. Realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon the generation of a sufficient level of future taxable income and recoverable taxes paid in prior years.

The federal corporate income tax rate declined from 34% to 21% effective January 1, 2018 as a result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, (Tax Act). The Company's tax rate is lower than the federal statutory rate primarily as a result of tax-exempt income, the release of the valuation allowance related to capital loss carryforwards, a pension contribution made during the second quarter of 2018 that was attributable to the 2017 plan year, and the Company's additional tax planning initiatives. The provisional adjustments recorded in the fourth quarter of 2017 related to the enactment of the Tax Act were finalized during the third quarter of 2018 with the filing of the Company's 2017 tax return, within the one-year measurement period provided under Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118 in regards to the application of FASB's ASC Topic 740, Income Taxes.

The Tax Act resulted in stranded income tax effects in accumulated other comprehensive loss, for which new accounting guidance was issued under ASU 2018-02. This guidance allowed the Company to early adopt and retrospectively apply the reclassification of stranded income tax effects from accumulated other comprehensive loss to retained earnings. As of December 31, 2017, the Company reclassified $1.2 million from accumulated other comprehensive loss to retained earnings resulting from the Tax Act.

A tax position is initially recognized in the financial statements when it is more likely than not the position will be sustained upon examination by the tax authorities. Such tax positions are initially and subsequently measured as the largest amount of tax benefit that is greater than 50% likely of being realized upon ultimate settlement with the tax authority assuming full knowledge of the position and all relevant facts. Penalties and interest incurred under the applicable tax law are classified as income tax expense. The Company has not recognized any tax liabilities or any interest or penalties in income tax expense related to uncertain tax positions as of December 31, 2018, 2017, and 2016.

Trust Department

Property held by the Bank in a fiduciary or agency capacity for customers is not included in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets, since such items are not assets of the Company. Trust department income is recognized on the accrual basis.

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

For the purpose of the consolidated statements of cash flows, cash and cash equivalents consist of short-term federal funds sold and securities sold or purchased under agreements to resell, overnight interest earning deposits with banks, cash, and due from banks.

Stock-Based Compensation

The Company's stock-based employee compensation plan (the plan) is described in Note 13, Stock Compensation. In accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718, Compensation – Stock Compensation, the Company measures the cost of the stock-based compensation based on the grant-date fair value of the award, recognizing the cost over the requisite service period. The fair value of an award is estimated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. The Company adopted ASU 2016-09, Improvements to Employee Share-Based Payment Accounting, on January 1, 2017 and elected to recognize forfeitures as they occur. Prior to the adoption of the ASU, the expense was recognized based on an estimation of the number of awards for which the requisite service is expected to be rendered, and is included in salaries and employee benefits in the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Income. The plan expired on February 28, 2010, except as to outstanding options under the plan, and no further options may be granted pursuant to the plan. All options were fully expensed as of September 30, 2017.

Treasury Stock

The purchase of the Company's common stock is recorded at cost. Purchases of the stock are made both in the open market and through negotiated private purchases based on market prices. At the date of subsequent reissue, the treasury stock account is reduced by the cost associated with such stock on a first-in-first-out basis. Gains on the sale of treasury stock are credited to additional paid-in-capital. Losses on the sale of treasury stock are charged to additional paid-in-capital to the extent of pervious gains, otherwise charged to retained earnings.

Stock Dividend On July 1, 2018, the Company paid a special stock dividend of four percent to shareholders of record at the close of business on June 15, 2018. For all periods presented, share information, including basic and diluted earnings per share, has been adjusted retroactively to reflect this change.

Summary of Recent Transactions and Events On February 8, 2019, Hawthorn Bank, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hawthorn Bancshares, Inc., completed the sale of its branch located in Branson, Missouri to Branson Bank, Branson, Missouri. Total deposits transferred were approximately $10.6 million while loans assigned to the branch were retained. The Branson branch land and building were considered assets held for sale at December 31, 2018. The sale is expected to result in a pre-tax gain of approximately $2.1 million, $1.7 million related to the land and building, subject to certain future adjustments required in the definitive agreement.

Reclassifications Certain prior year information has been reclassified to conform to the 2018 presentation.

The following represents significant new accounting principles adopted in 2018:

Revenue from Contracts with Customers On January 1, 2018, the Company adopted ASU No. 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606) and all subsequent ASUs that modified Topic 606. The implementation of the new standard did not have a material impact on the measurement or recognition of revenue; as such, a cumulative effect adjustment to opening retained earnings was not deemed necessary. Results for reporting periods beginning after January 1, 2018 are presented under Topic 606, while prior period amounts were not adjusted and continue to be reported in accordance with historic accounting under Topic 605.

Topic 606 does not apply to revenue associated with financial instruments, including revenue from loans and securities. In addition, certain noninterest income streams such as fees associated with mortgage servicing rights, financial guarantees, derivatives, and certain credit card fees are not in scope of the new guidance. Topic 606 is applicable to noninterest revenue streams such as trust department revenue, service charges and fees, debit card income, ATM surcharge income, and other real estate owned sales. However, the recognition of these revenue streams did not change significantly upon adoption of Topic 606. Noninterest revenue streams within the scope of Topic 606 are discussed in Footnote 16.

Financial Instruments The FASB issued ASU 2016-01, Recognition and Measurement of Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities, in January 2016. The amendments require all equity investments to be measured at fair value with changes in the fair value recognized through net income, other than those accounted for under the equity method of accounting or those that result in the consolidation of the investee. Additionally, these amendments require presentation in other comprehensive income the portion of the total change in the fair value of a liability resulting from a change in the instrument-specific credit risk for those liabilities measured at fair value. The amendments also require use of the exit price notion when measuring the fair value of financial instruments for disclosure purposes. These amendments are effective for interim and annual periods beginning January 1, 2018. The adoption of the ASU did not have a significant effect on the Company's consolidated financial statements.

The FASB issued ASU 2018-04, Investments - Debt Securities (Topic 320) and Regulated Operations (Topic 980): The amendment in this ASU adds, amends and supersedes various paragraphs that contain SEC guidance in ASC 320, Investments-Debt Securities and ASC 980, Regulated Operations. The amendments in this ASU are effective when a registrant adopts ASU 2016-01, which for the Company was January 1, 2018. This amendment did not have a significant effect on the Company's consolidated financial statements.

Liabilities The FASB issued ASU 2016-04, Recognition of Breakage for Certain Prepaid Stored-Value Products, in March 2016, in order to address current and potential future diversity in practice related to the derecognition of a prepaid stored-value product liability. Such products include prepaid gift cards issued on a specific payment network and redeemable at network-accepting merchant locations, prepaid telecommunication cards, and traveler's checks. The amendments require that the portion of the dollar value of prepaid stored-value products that is ultimately unredeemed (that is, the breakage) be accounted for consistent with the breakage guidance for stored-value product transactions provided in ASC Topic 606 - Revenue from Contracts with Customers. These amendments are effective for interim and annual periods beginning January 1, 2018. The adoption of the ASU did not have a significant effect on the Company's consolidated financial statements.

Pension The FASB issued ASU 2017-07, Improving the Presentation of Net Periodic Pension Cost and Net Periodic Postretirement Benefit Cost in March 2017. Under the new guidance, the Company presents the service cost component of the net periodic benefit cost in the same income statement line item (e.g., Salaries and Benefits) as other employee compensation costs arising from services rendered during the period. In addition, only the service cost component will be eligible for capitalization in assets. The Company presents the other components separately (e.g., Other Noninterest Expense) from the line item that includes the service cost. The Company utilizes the ASU's practical expedient allowing entities to estimate amounts for comparative periods using the information previously disclosed in their pension and other postretirement benefit plan footnote. The amendments were effective January 1, 2018 and did not have a significant effect on the Company's consolidated financial statements. See Note 12 for further discussion.