FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2017

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS:

Accounting guidance provides for valuation techniques, such as the market approach (comparable market prices), the income approach (present value of future income or cash flow), and the cost approach (cost to replace the service capacity of an asset or replacement cost). A fair value hierarchy using three broad levels prioritizes the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value. The following is a brief description of those three levels:


•	Level 1: Observable inputs such as quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.


•	Level 2: Inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly. These include quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets and quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active.


•	Level 3: Unobservable inputs that reflect the reporting entity’s own assumptions.

The fair value of our notes payable, capital leases, and commercial bank financing are considered Level 2 measurements within the fair value hierarchy. The carrying value and fair value of our notes and debentures for the periods presented (in thousands):



	As of September 30, 2017		As of December 31, 2016
	Carrying Value (a)	Fair Value	Carrying Value (a)	Fair Value
6.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2022	500,000	516,170	500,000	521,240
5.875% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2026	350,000	359,342	350,000	351,456
5.625% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2024	550,000	565,637	550,000	562,755
5.375% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2021	600,000	615,714	600,000	617,892
5.125% Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027	400,000	389,156	400,000	382,028
Term Loan A	241,073	241,374	272,198	271,517
Term Loan B	1,359,725	1,361,425	1,365,625	1,364,841
Debt of variable interest entities	20,585	20,585	23,198	23,198
Debt of other operating divisions	27,470	27,470	135,211	135,211

(a) Amounts are carried net of debt discount and deferred financing cost, which are excluded in the above table, of $40.7 million as of September 30, 2017 and $43.4 million as of December 31, 2016.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

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