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Income Taxes Level 1 (Notes)
 9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2021
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Tax Disclosure Income Taxes
Income tax expense during interim periods is based on our estimated annual effective income tax rate plus any discrete
items, which are recorded in the period in which they occur. Discrete items include, among others, such events as changes in estimates due to the finalization of tax returns, tax audit settlements, expiration of statutes of limitation, and increases or decreases in valuation allowances on deferred tax assets. Our effective tax rate was 23.4% and 22.7% for the three months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively. Our effective tax rate was 23.9% and 23.6% for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The higher effective tax rate for the three months ended September 30, 2021 was primarily due to a change in estimate in the finalization of the 2019 tax return in the prior year, partially offset by excess tax benefits recognized on the settlement of employee share-based awards. The effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020 was higher than the federal statutory tax rate of 21% primarily due to state tax expenses, partially offset by excess tax benefits recognized on the settlement of employee share-based awards.
Unrecognized Tax Benefits
As of September 30, 2021, the total amount of our unrecognized tax benefits was $1.4 million and the total amount of our accrued interest was $0.7 million.
The federal statutes of limitation have expired for all tax years prior to 2018, and we are not currently under audit by the IRS. However, pursuant to the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the statute of limitations on the transition tax for the 2017 tax year does not expire until 2024. Various state jurisdictions are auditing years 2013 through 2019. There are currently no federal or provincial audits in Canada; however, years subsequent to 2015 remain open and could be subject to examination. We believe that it is reasonably possible that the recorded amount of gross unrecognized tax benefits may decrease by $1.4 million within the next twelve months as a result of concluding various state tax matters