Income Taxes

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

Income Taxes

6. Income Taxes

(Loss) income before provision for income taxes was generated from the following sources (in thousands):

	Year Ended December 31,
	2021			2020
Domestic	$	(31,301	)	$	4,213
Foreign		473			112
Total (loss) income before provision for income taxes	$	(30,828	)	$	4,325

F-18

A summary of the income tax expense (benefit) is as follows (in thousands):

	Year Ended December 31,
	2021			2020
Current:
Federal	$	—		$	(133	)
State		5			6
Foreign		152			134
Total current		157			7
Deferred:
Federal		24			155
State		35			24
Foreign		(1	)		(26	)
Total deferred		58			153
Total income tax expense	$	215		$	160

A reconciliation of the provision for income taxes to the amount of income tax expense (benefit) that would result from applying the federal statutory rate to the loss before income taxes is as follows:

	Year Ended December 31,
	2021				2020
Federal statutory rate		21.0		%		21.0		%
State tax, net of federal benefit		4.3				2.7
Equity compensation		0.4				(1.8	)
International tax items		0.1				(0.1	)
Foreign taxes		(0.5	)			2.5
State NOL true-up		1.2				2.5
Miscellaneous		(0.4	)			1.3
Effect of change in rate		0.8				3.5
Change in valuation allowance		(27.6	)			(27.9	)
		(0.7	)	%		3.7		%

F-19

The major components of the Company’s deferred tax assets and liabilities are as follows (in thousands):

	Year Ended December 31,
	2021			2020
Deferred income tax assets
Net operating loss carry forwards	$	47,204		$	42,127
Credit carry forwards		3,027			3,027
Fixed assets		84			116
Intangibles		6,259			3,346
Equity-based compensation		208			343
Nondeductible accruals		532			365
Various reserves		-			23
Deferred rent		33			94
Other		7			2
Valuation allowance		(57,346	)		(49,405	)
Total deferred income taxes - net		8			38
Deferred income tax liabilities
Foreign intangibles		-			(1	)
Unrealized translation gain/loss		(45	)		3
Prepaid expenses		(80	)		(99	)
Total deferred income liabilities		(125	)		(97	)
Net deferred income tax (liabilities)	$	(117	)	$	(59	)

The Company has federal and state net operating loss (“NOL”) carryforwards of approximately $180.3 million and $148.6 million, respectively, at December 31, 2021, to reduce future cash payments for income taxes. The federal NOL carryforwards generated prior to 2018 will expire from 2024 through 2037 and state NOL carryforwards will expire 2018 through 2041. Federal NOL carryforwards generated in 2018 and thereafter have no expiration date.

The Company has federal and state tax credit carryforwards of approximately $2.5 million and $0.7 million, respectively, at December 31, 2021. These tax credits will begin to expire in 2028.

To the extent that an ownership change has occurred under Internal Revenue Code Sections 382 and 383, the Company’s use of its loss carryforwards and credit carryforwards to offset future taxable income may be limited.

At December 31, 2021 and 2020, the Company had unrecognized tax benefits, including interest and penalties, of approximately $0.4 million.

The Company’s gross unrecognized tax benefits as of December 31, 2021 and 2020 and the changes in those balances are as follows (in thousands):

	Year Ended December 31,
	2021			2020
Beginning balance	$	428		$	428
Other		(16	)		—
Gross unrecognized tax benefits, ending balance	$	412		$	428

In assessing whether a valuation allowance is required, significant weight is to be given to evidence that can be objectively verified. A significant factor in the Company’s assessment is that the Company was in a three-year historical cumulative loss as of the end of fiscal 2021. In addition, the Company was also in a loss for fiscal year 2017 and 2018. These facts, combined with uncertain near-term market and economic conditions, reduced the Company’s ability to rely on projections of future taxable income in assessing the realizability of its deferred tax assets.

F-20

After a review of the four sources of taxable income as of December 31, 2021 (as described above), and after consideration of the Company’s continuing cumulative loss position as of December 31, 2021, the Company recorded a valuation allowance related to its U.S.-based deferred tax assets of $57.3 million at December 31, 2021. The valuation allowance on deferred tax assets decreased by $7.9 million and $1.0 million in 2021 and 2020, respectively.

The Company recognizes interest and penalties accrued related to unrecognized tax benefits in income tax expense, however during 2021 and 2020, the Company did not recognize any interest or penalties. The cumulative interest and penalties at December 31, 2021 and 2020 were $0. The Company does not anticipate any material changes to unrecognized tax benefits within the next twelve months that will affect the effective tax rate.

The Company is subject to U.S. federal income tax as well as to income tax of multiple state jurisdictions. Currently there are no audits in process or pending from Federal or state tax authorities. The Company is no longer subject to examination for U.S. federal income tax returns for years before December 31, 2018 and for state income tax returns, the Company is no longer subject to examination for years before December 31, 2017. As of December 31, 2021, the Company had no outstanding tax audits. The outcome of tax audits cannot be predicted with certainty. If any issues addressed in the Company’s tax audits are resolved in a manner not consistent with management’s expectations, the Company could be required to adjust its provision for income tax in the period such resolution occurs. As of December 31, 2021, a current estimate of the range of changes that may occur within the next twelve months cannot be made due to the uncertainty regarding the timing of these events.

For financial reporting purposes, income before provision for income taxes for the Company’s foreign subsidiaries was $0.5 million and $0.1 million for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. Smith Micro does not provide for U.S. taxes on its unremitted earnings of foreign subsidiaries that have not been previously taxed since the Company intends to invest such undistributed earnings indefinitely outside of the U.S.

The 2017 Act subjects a U.S. shareholder to current tax on global intangible low-taxed income (“GILTI”) earned by certain foreign subsidiaries. The FASB Staff Q&A, Topic 740 No. 5, Accounting for Global Intangible Low-Taxed Income, states that an entity can make an accounting policy election to either recognize deferred taxes for temporary differences expected to reverse as GILTI in future years or provide for the tax expense related to GILTI in the year the tax is incurred. The Company has elected to recognize the tax on GILTI as a period expense in the period the tax is incurred. The current income related to the GILTI inclusion in 2021 is $0.3 million.

On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) was enacted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act, among other things, permits NOL carryovers and carrybacks to offset taxable income for years beginning before 2021. The CARES Act also made modifications to IRC Sec. 163(j) to increase the allowable interest from 30% of adjusted taxable income to 50% of adjusted taxable income. The CARES Act changes in NOL carrybacks has no impact on the Company’s tax provision.  The change in interest expense limitation pursuant to the CARES Act does not have a significant impact on the tax provision.