INCOME TAXES

The following table summarizes the provision for income taxes for continuing operations (in thousands) for the three and six months ended June 30, and the applicable effective tax rates:



	Three Months Ended June 30,						Six Months Ended June 30,
	2017			2016			2017			2016
Provision for income taxes	$	7,853		$	(1,897	)	$	9,906		$	3,179
Effective tax rate	37.3		%	(11.3		)%	36.6		%	10.3		%

The effective tax rate for the three months and six months ended June 30, 2017 was greater than the U.S. federal statutory rate of 35% due to state taxes and $2.0 million of pretax losses generated by the European residential solar racking business for which no tax benefit has been recorded as such benefit is not expected to be realizable partially offset by net deductible permanent differences and favorable discrete items. The effective tax rate for the three and six months ended June 30, 2016 was less than the U.S. federal statutory rate of 35% due to net deductible permanent differences and favorable discrete items partially offset by state taxes.

The Company recorded a discrete tax benefit of $11.4 million during the three months ended June 30, 2016 due to the effect of a worthless stock deduction and an associated bad debt deduction of inter-company debt resulting from the sale of its European industrial manufacturing business to a third party. The amount of this benefit was subsequently adjusted in the fourth quarter of 2016.