Income Taxes

The principal components of EOG's net deferred income tax liabilities at December 31, 2016 and 2015 were as follows (in thousands):



	2016			2015
Current Deferred Income Tax Assets (Liabilities)
Commodity Hedging Contracts	$	22,206		$	—
Deferred Compensation Plans	43,984			38,559
Alternative Minimum Tax Credit Carryforward	84,426			93,316
Foreign Net Operating Loss	37,251			47,786
Foreign Valuation Allowance	(28,097		)	(35,536		)
Accrued Expenses and Liabilities	13,754			—
Other	(4,137		)	3,687
Total Net Current Deferred Income Tax Assets	$	169,387		$	147,812
Noncurrent Deferred Income Tax Assets (Liabilities)
Foreign Oil and Gas Exploration and Development Costs Deducted for Tax Under Book Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization	$	(39,852	)	$	(57,569	)
Foreign Net Operating Loss	314,899			443,010
Foreign Valuation Allowances	(268,499		)	(380,104		)
Foreign Other	438			1,506
Total Net Noncurrent Deferred Income Tax Assets	$	6,986		$	6,843
Noncurrent Deferred Income Tax (Assets) Liabilities
Oil and Gas Exploration and Development Costs Deducted for Tax Over Book Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization	$	5,899,533		$	5,299,817
Non-Producing Leasehold Costs	(64,898		)	(53,026		)
Seismic Costs Capitalized for Tax	(161,920		)	(162,240		)
Equity Awards	(139,787		)	(140,663		)
Capitalized Interest	86,504			98,242
Alternative Minimum Tax Credit Carryforward	(673,205		)	(685,189		)
Undistributed Foreign Earnings	280,099			258,403
Other	(37,686		)	(27,442		)
Total Net Noncurrent Deferred Income Tax Liabilities	$	5,188,640		$	4,587,902
Total Net Deferred Income Tax Liabilities	$	5,012,267		$	4,433,247

The components of Income (Loss) Before Income Taxes for the years indicated below were as follows (in thousands):



	2016			2015			2014

United States	$	(1,520,573	)	$	(6,840,119	)	$	5,161,232
Foreign	(36,932		)	(81,437		)	(165,917		)
Total	$	(1,557,505	)	$	(6,921,556	)	$	4,995,315

The principal components of EOG's Income Tax Provision (Benefit) for the years indicated below were as follows (in thousands):



	2016			2015			2014
Current:
Federal	$	11,567		$	21,719		$	269,326
State	(8,369		)	9,404			22,835
Foreign	51,189			54,143			82,721
Total	54,387			85,266			374,882
Deferred:
Federal	(532,979		)	(2,362,926		)	1,608,706
State	4,876			(127,444		)	29,056
Foreign	12,897			8,063			67,184
Total	(515,206		)	(2,482,307		)	1,704,946
Income Tax Provision (Benefit)	$	(460,819	)	$	(2,397,041	)	$	2,079,828

The differences between taxes computed at the United States federal statutory tax rate and EOG's effective rate were as follows:



	2016		2015		2014

Statutory Federal Income Tax Rate	35.00	%	35.00	%	35.00	%
State Income Tax, Net of Federal Benefit	0.15		1.11		0.68
Income Tax Provision Related to Foreign Operations	(1.23	)	(1.31	)	(0.12	)
Income Tax Provision Related to Trinidad Operations	(3.71	)	—		—
Canadian Divestiture	—		—		(3.46	)
Undistributed Foreign Earnings	—		—		4.94
Foreign Valuation Allowances	—		—		6.47
Foreign Oil and Gas Impairments	—		—		(1.90	)
Other	(0.62	)	(0.17	)	0.03
Effective Income Tax Rate	29.59	%	34.63	%	41.64	%

The effective tax rate of 30% in 2016 was lower than the prior year rate of 35% primarily due to the effects of recording additional Trinidad taxes resulting from a tax settlement reached during the year.

Deferred tax assets are recorded for certain tax benefits, including tax net operating losses (NOLs) and tax credit carryforwards, provided that management assesses the utilization of such assets to be "more likely than not." Management assesses the available positive and negative evidence to estimate if sufficient future taxable income will be generated to use the existing deferred tax assets. On the basis of this evaluation, EOG has recorded valuation allowances for the portion of certain foreign and state deferred tax assets that management does not believe are more likely than not to be realized.

The principal components of EOG's rollforward of valuation allowances for deferred tax assets were as follows (in thousands):



	2016			2015			2014

Beginning Balance	$	506,127		$	463,018		$	223,599
Increase ⁽¹⁾	37,221			146,602			392,729
Decrease ⁽²⁾	(12,667		)	(4,315		)	(1,424		)
Other ⁽³⁾	(147,460		)	(99,178		)	(151,886		)
Ending Balance	$	383,221		$	506,127		$	463,018


(1)	Increase in valuation allowance related to the generation of tax net operating losses and other deferred tax assets.


(2)	Decrease in valuation allowance associated with adjustments to certain deferred tax assets and their related allowance.


(3)	Represents dispositions/revisions/foreign exchange rate variances and the effect of statutory income tax rate changes.

The balance of unrecognized tax benefits at December 31, 2016, was $36 million, of which $2 million may potentially have an earnings impact. EOG records interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits to its income tax provision. Currently, $2 million of interest has been recognized in the Consolidated Statements of Income and Comprehensive Income. EOG does not anticipate that the amount of the unrecognized tax benefits will significantly change during the next twelve months. EOG and its subsidiaries file income tax returns and are subject to tax audits in the United States and various state, local and foreign jurisdictions. EOG's earliest open tax years in its principal jurisdictions are as follows: United States federal (2011), Canada (2012), United Kingdom (2015), Trinidad (2010) and China (2008).

EOG's foreign subsidiaries' undistributed earnings of approximately $2 billion at December 31, 2016, are no longer considered to be permanently reinvested outside the United States and, accordingly, EOG has cumulatively recorded $280 million of United States federal, foreign and state deferred income taxes. EOG changed its permanent reinvestment assertion in 2014.

In 2016, EOG's alternative minimum tax (AMT) credits were reduced by $21 million mostly as a result of carry-back claims and certain elections. Remaining AMT credits of $758 million, resulting from AMT paid in prior years, will be carried forward indefinitely until they are used to offset regular income taxes in future periods. The ability of EOG to utilize these AMT credit carryforwards to reduce federal income taxes may become subject to various limitations under the Internal Revenue Code. Such limitations may arise if certain ownership changes (as defined for income tax purposes) were to occur.

As of December 31, 2016, EOG had state income tax net operating losses (NOLs) being carried forward of approximately $1.6 billion, which, if unused, expire between 2017 and 2035. During 2016, EOG's United Kingdom subsidiary incurred a tax NOL of approximately $38 million which, along with prior years' NOLs of $740 million, will be carried forward indefinitely. As described above, these NOLs have been evaluated for the likelihood of future utilization, and valuation allowances have been established for the portion of these deferred tax assets that do not meet the "more likely than not" threshold.