| (13) | Income Taxes |
Income tax expense (benefit) is as follows:
| Year ended December 31, | ||||||||
| 2016 | 2017 | |||||||
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Current: |
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Federal |
$ | 789,150 | $ | (2,466,482 | ) | |||
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State |
264,707 | 289,563 | ||||||
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| 1,053,857 | (2,176,919 | ) | ||||||
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Deferred: |
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Federal |
2,172,740 | (47,531,436 | ) | |||||
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State |
5,071,205 | 1,480,065 | ||||||
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| 7,243,945 | (46,051,371 | ) | ||||||
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| $ | 8,297,802 | $ | (48,228,290 | ) | ||||
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Income tax expense (benefit) differs from the amounts that would result from applying the federal statutory rate of 35%, effective for most of the year ended December 31, 2017, to the Company’s income before taxes as follows:
| Year ended December 31, | ||||||||
| 2016 | 2017 | |||||||
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Expected tax expense |
$ | 19,525,175 | $ | 13,616,008 | ||||
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State income taxes, net of federal benefit |
552,499 | 1,150,258 | ||||||
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Gain on merger |
(15,941,611 | ) | (3,518,814 | ) | ||||
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Tax rate adjustments |
2,915,844 | (59,717,125 | ) | |||||
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Change in valuation allowance |
(65,900 | ) | 52,833 | |||||
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Non-deductible items |
1,147,565 | (110,953 | ) | |||||
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Other |
164,230 | 299,503 | ||||||
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| $ | 8,297,802 | $ | (48,228,290 | ) | ||||
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Temporary differences that give rise to the components of deferred tax assets and liabilities are as follows:
| December 31, | ||||||||
| 2016 | 2017 | |||||||
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Deferred tax assets: |
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Allowance for doubtful accounts |
$ | 625,317 | $ | 427,484 | ||||
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Goodwill |
8,782,364 | — | ||||||
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Other assets |
(42,787 | ) | (2,047,104 | ) | ||||
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Accrued expenses |
1,497,317 | 355,361 | ||||||
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Other long-term liabilities |
6,353,590 | 2,918,611 | ||||||
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Stock-based compensation |
248,046 | 107,715 | ||||||
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Net operating losses |
3,750,420 | 5,506,040 | ||||||
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Subtotal |
21,214,267 | 7,268,107 | ||||||
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Valuation allowance |
(528,179 | ) | (328,170 | ) | ||||
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Total |
20,686,088 | 6,939,937 | ||||||
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Deferred tax liabilities: |
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Prepaid expenses |
(874,495 | ) | (96,085 | ) | ||||
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Property and equipment |
(6,110,234 | ) | (2,743,550 | ) | ||||
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Intangibles |
(174,240,627 | ) | (119,383,233 | ) | ||||
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Total |
(181,225,356 | ) | (122,222,868 | ) | ||||
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Net deferred tax liabilities |
$ | (160,539,268 | ) | $ | (115,282,931 | ) | ||
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As of December 31, 2017, the Company has federal net operating losses of $5.5 million and state net operating losses of $74.3 million, which expire in various years through 2037. The valuation allowance relates to net operating losses and unrealized losses on investments which management has determined, more likely than not, that such losses will not be utilized.
As of December 31, 2016 and 2017, the Company does not have any material unrecognized tax benefits and accordingly has not recorded any interest or penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits. The Company and its subsidiaries file a consolidated federal income tax return and various state returns. These returns remain subject to examination by taxing authorities for all years after 2013.
New Tax Reform Legislation
In December 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Tax Act”) was enacted. The Tax Act makes significant change in U.S. tax law including a reduction in the corporate tax rates, changes to net operating loss carryforwards and carrybacks, and a repeal of the corporate alternative minimum tax. The Tax Act reduced the U.S. corporate tax rate from the current rate of 35% to 21%. As a result of the Tax Act, the Company was required to revalue deferred tax assets and liabilities at the enacted rate. This revaluation resulted in a benefit of $59.7 million to income tax expense and a corresponding reduction in the deferred tax liability.