21. Segment and Related Information

We evaluate, oversee and manage the financial performance of our Solid Waste subsidiaries through our 17 Areas. The 17 Areas constitute our operating segments and none of the Areas individually meet the quantitative criteria to be a separate reportable segment. We have evaluated the aggregation criteria and concluded that, based on the similarities between our Areas, including the fact that our Solid Waste business is homogenous across geographies with the same services offered across the Areas, aggregation of our Areas is appropriate for purposes of presenting our reportable segments. Accordingly, we have aggregated our 17 Areas into three tiers that we believe have similar economic characteristics and future prospects based in large part on a review of the Areas’ income from operations margins. The economic variations experienced by our Areas is attributable to a variety of factors, including regulatory environment of the Area; economic environment of the Area, including level of commercial and industrial activity; population density; service offering mix and disposal logistics, with no one factor being singularly determinative of an Area’s current or future economic performance.

In 2015, we analyzed the Areas’ income from operations margins for purposes of segment reporting and realigned our Solid Waste tiers to reflect recent changes in their relative economic characteristics and prospects. These changes were the result of various factors including acquisitions, divestitures, business mix and the economic climate of various geographies. In 2016, there were no realignments of our Solid Waste tiers.

Tier 1 is comprised of our operations across the Southern United States, with the exception of Southern California and the Florida peninsula and also includes the New England states, the tri-state area of Michigan, Indiana and Ohio and Western Canada. Tier 2 includes Southern California, Eastern Canada, Wisconsin, Minnesota and a portion of the lower Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Tier 3 encompasses all the remaining operations including the Pacific Northwest and Northern California, the majority of the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, the Florida peninsula, Illinois and Missouri.

Our Wheelabrator business, which provides waste-to-energy services and manages waste-to-energy facilities and independent power production plants, was a separate reportable segment until the sale of the business in 2014, as it met the quantitative disclosure thresholds.

The operating segments not evaluated and overseen through the 17 Areas are presented herein as “Other” as these operating segments do not meet the criteria to be aggregated with other operating segments and do not meet the quantitative criteria to be separately reported.

Summarized financial information concerning our reportable segments as of and for the years ended December 31 is shown in the following table (in millions):


	Gross Operating Revenues		Intercompany Operating Revenues(c)			Net Operating Revenues		Income from Operations (d),(e)			Depreciation and Amortization		Capital Expenditures (f)		Total Assets (g),(h)
2016
Solid Waste:
Tier 1	$	5,241	$	(911	)	$	4,330	$	1,430		$	424	$	452	$	6,188
Tier 2		3,391		(620	)		2,771		604			280		295		5,488
Tier 3		5,336		(921	)		4,415		912			440		451		6,571
Other(a)		2,278		(185	)		2,093		(100	)		101		104		1,489

		16,246		(2,637	)		13,609		2,846			1,245		1,302		19,736
Corporate and Other(b)		—		—			—		(550	)		56		45		1,401

Total	$	16,246	$	(2,637	)	$	13,609	$	2,296		$	1,301	$	1,347	$	21,137

2015
Solid Waste:
Tier 1	$	5,083	$	(856	)	$	4,227	$	1,290		$	428	$	382	$	6,098
Tier 2		3,304		(613	)		2,691		629			280		251		5,394
Tier 3		4,898		(813	)		4,085		808			379		412		5,930
Other(a)		2,065		(107	)		1,958		(160	)		94		128		1,701

		15,350		(2,389	)		12,961		2,567			1,181		1,173		19,123
Corporate and Other(b)		—		—			—		(522	)		64		56		1,783

Total	$	15,350	$	(2,389	)	$	12,961	$	2,045		$	1,245	$	1,229	$	20,906

2014
Solid Waste:
Tier 1	$	5,117	$	(834	)	$	4,283	$	1,301		$	408	$	388	$	6,150
Tier 2		3,516		(663	)		2,853		711			287		223		5,648
Tier 3		4,816		(786	)		4,030		787			361		351		5,449
Other(a)		2,191		(76	)		2,115		(400	)		128		134		1,791
Wheelabrator		817		(102	)		715		669			37		11		—

		16,457		(2,461	)		13,996		3,068			1,221		1,107		19,038
Corporate and Other(b)		—		—			—		(769	)		71		74		2,805

Total	$	16,457	$	(2,461	)	$	13,996	$	2,299		$	1,292	$	1,181	$	21,843

(a)

Our “Other” net operating revenues and “Other” income from operations include (i) our Strategic Business Solutions (“WMSBS”) organization; (ii) those elements of our landfill gas-to-energy operations and third-party subcontract and administration revenues managed by our Energy and Environmental Services and WM Renewable Energy organizations that are not included in the operations of our reportable segments; (iii) our recycling brokerage services and (iv) our expanded service offerings and solutions, such as portable self-storage and long distance moving services, fluorescent lamp recycling and interests we hold in oil and gas producing properties. In addition, our “Other” income from operations reflects the results of non-operating entities that provide financial assurance and self-insurance support for our Solid Waste business.

(b)

Corporate operating results reflect certain costs incurred for various support services that are not allocated to our reportable segments. These support services include, among other things, treasury, legal, information technology, tax, insurance, centralized service center processes, other administrative functions and the maintenance of our closed landfills. Income from operations for “Corporate and other” also includes costs associated with our long-term incentive program and any administrative expenses or revisions to our estimated obligations associated with divested operations.

(c)	Intercompany operating revenues reflect each segment’s total intercompany sales, including intercompany sales within a segment and between segments. Transactions within and between segments are generally made on a basis intended to reflect the market value of the service.

(d)	For those items included in the determination of income from operations, the accounting policies of the segments are the same as those described in Note 3.

(e)

The income from operations provided by our Solid Waste business is generally indicative of the margins provided by our collection, landfill, transfer and recycling lines of business. From time to time, the operating results of our reportable segments are significantly affected by certain transactions or events that management believes are not indicative or representative of our results. In 2014, we recognized a $519 million gain on the sale of our Wheelabrator business. Refer to Notes 12 and 13 for explanations of certain other transactions and events affecting our operating results.

(f)	Includes non-cash items. Capital expenditures are reported in our reportable segments at the time they are recorded within the segments’ property and equipment balances and, therefore, may include amounts that have been accrued but not yet paid.

(g)	The reconciliation of total assets reported above to “Total assets” in the Consolidated Balance Sheets is as follows (in millions):


	December 31,
	2016			2015			2014
Total assets, as reported above	$	21,137		$	20,906		$	21,843
Elimination of intercompany investments and advances		(278	)		(539	)		(591	)

Total assets, per Consolidated Balance Sheet	$	20,859		$	20,367		$	21,252

(h)

Goodwill is included within each segment’s total assets. For segment reporting purposes, our material recovery facilities are included as a component of their respective Areas and our recycling brokerage services is included as part of our “Other” operations. The goodwill associated with our acquisition of Deffenbaugh in 2015 has been assigned to our Areas, primarily Tier 3 and to a lesser extent Tier 1. The goodwill associated with our acquisition of SWS in 2016 has been assigned to our Florida Area, in Tier 3. Other adjustments in 2016 relate to the finalization of purchase accounting for acquisitions executed in 2015. These adjustments primarily resulted in a decrease in the related contingent consideration liability. See Note 19 for additional information on our acquisitions. The following table presents changes in goodwill during 2015 and 2016 by reportable segment (in millions):


	Solid Waste
	Tier 1			Tier 2			Tier 3			Other			Total
Balance, December 31, 2014	$	2,178		$	1,795		$	1,662		$	105		$	5,740
Acquired goodwill		27			42			151			105			325
Divested goodwill		—			(6	)		(1	)		—			(7	)
Foreign currency translation		(15	)		(59	)		—			—			(74	)

Balance, December 31, 2015	$	2,190		$	1,772		$	1,812		$	210		$	5,984
Acquired goodwill		11			12			254			3			280
Divested goodwill		—			—			(1	)		—			(1	)
Impairments		—			—			—			(12	)		(12	)
Foreign currency translation		2			10			—			—			12
Other adjustments		—			(2	)		—			(46	)		(48	)

Balance, December 31, 2016	$	2,203		$	1,792		$	2,065		$	155		$	6,215

The mix of operating revenues from our major lines of business for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2016			2015			2014
Commercial	$	3,480		$	3,332		$	3,393
Residential		2,487			2,499			2,543
Industrial		2,412			2,252			2,231
Other		423			356			340

Total collection		8,802			8,439			8,507
Landfill		3,110			2,919			2,849
Transfer		1,512			1,377			1,353
Recycling		1,221			1,163			1,370
Other(a)		1,601			1,452			1,561
Wheelabrator		—			—			817
Intercompany(b)		(2,637	)		(2,389	)		(2,461	)

Total	$	13,609		$	12,961		$	13,996

(a)

The “Other” line of business includes (i) our WMSBS organization; (ii) our landfill gas-to-energy operations; (iii) certain services within our Energy and Environmental Services organization, including our construction and remediation services and our services associated with the disposal of fly ash and (iv) our expanded service offerings and solutions, such as portable self-storage and long distance moving services, and interests we hold in oil and gas producing properties.

(b)	Intercompany revenues between lines of business are eliminated within the Consolidated Financial Statements included herein.

Net operating revenues relating to operations in the United States and Puerto Rico, and Canada for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2016		2015		2014
United States and Puerto Rico(a)	$	12,915	$	12,196	$	13,064
Canada		694		765		932

Total	$	13,609	$	12,961	$	13,996

(a)	We sold our Puerto Rico operations in 2014. Refer to Note 19 for additional information.

Property and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization, relating to operations in the United States and Puerto Rico, and Canada for the years ended December 31 are as follows (in millions):


	2016		2015		2014
United States and Puerto Rico(a)	$	10,040	$	9,778	$	9,586
Canada		910		887		1,071

Total	$	10,950	$	10,665	$	10,657

(a)	We sold our Puerto Rico operations in 2014. Refer to Note 19 for additional information.