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COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES | 6 Months Ended
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Feb. 29, 2020
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES [Abstract] |
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES | NOTE 6 – COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES Legal Proceedings From time to time, the Company and its subsidiaries are subject to legal proceedings, claims and litigation arising in the ordinary course of business related to the Company’s operations and property ownership. The Company evaluates such matters on a case by case basis, and vigorously contests any such legal proceedings or claims which the Company believes are without merit. The Company believes that the final disposition of these matters will not have a material adverse effect on its financial position, results of operations or liquidity. It is possible, however, that the Company's results of operations for a particular quarter or fiscal year could be impacted by changes in circumstances relating to such matters. The Company establishes an accrual for legal proceedings if and when those matters reach a stage where they present loss contingencies that are both probable and reasonably estimable. In such cases, there may be a possible exposure to loss in excess of any amounts accrued. The Company monitors those matters for developments that would affect the likelihood of a loss and the accrued amount, if any, thereof, and adjusts the amount as appropriate. If the loss contingency at issue is not both probable and reasonably estimable, the Company does not establish an accrual, but will continue to monitor the matter for developments that will make the loss contingency both probable and reasonably estimable. If it is at least a reasonable possibility that a material loss will occur, the Company will provide disclosure regarding the contingency. On May 22, 2019, a class action complaint was filed against PriceSmart, Inc., as well as certain former and current officers in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California. On October 7, 2019, the Court granted Public Employees Retirement Association of New Mexico’s (PERA’s) Motion for Appointment as Lead Plaintiff. On January 3, 2020, PERA filed a consolidated class action complaint, which alleges violations of Section 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder. The Company intends to vigorously defend itself against any obligations or liability to the plaintiffs with respect to such claims. The Company believes the claims are without merit. Per a briefing schedule adopted by the Court, the Company filed a Motion to Dismiss the Plaintiff's Consolidated Amended Complaint in its entirety on March 3, 2020. Taxes Income Taxes – For interim reporting, the Company uses an estimated annual effective tax rate (AETR), pursuant to ASC 740-279, to calculate income tax expense. Income tax expense, deferred tax assets and liabilities, and liabilities for unrecognized tax benefits reflect management’s best estimate of current and future taxes to be paid. The Company is subject to income taxes in the United States and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Significant judgments and estimates are required in the determination of the consolidated income tax expense. Deferred income taxes arise from temporary differences between the tax basis of assets and liabilities and their reported amounts in the financial statements, which will result in taxable or deductible amounts in the future. In evaluating its ability to recover deferred tax assets in the jurisdictions from which they arise, the Company considers all available positive and negative evidence, including scheduled reversals of deferred tax liabilities, projected future taxable income, tax-planning strategies, and results of recent operations. In projecting future taxable income, the Company begins with historical results adjusted for the results of discontinued operations and incorporates assumptions about the amount of future state, federal, and foreign pretax operating income adjusted for items that do not have tax consequences. The assumptions about future taxable income require the use of significant judgment and are consistent with the plans and estimates we are using to manage the underlying businesses. In evaluating the objective evidence that historical results provide, the Company considers three years of cumulative operating income (loss). The Company is required to file federal and state tax returns in the United States and various other tax returns in foreign jurisdictions. The preparation of these tax returns requires the Company to interpret the applicable tax laws and regulations in effect in such jurisdictions, which could affect the amount of tax paid by the Company. The Company, in consultation with its tax advisors, bases its tax returns on interpretations that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. The tax returns, however, are subject to routine reviews by the various taxing authorities in the jurisdictions in which the Company files its returns. As part of these reviews, a taxing authority may disagree with the interpretations the Company used to calculate its tax liability and therefore require the Company to pay additional taxes. The Company accrues an amount for its estimate of probable additional income tax liability. In certain cases, the impact of an uncertain income tax position on the income tax return must be recognized at the largest amount that is more-likely-than-not to be sustained upon audit by the relevant tax authority. An uncertain income tax position will not be recognized if it has less than 50% likelihood of being sustained. There were no significant changes in the Company's uncertain income tax positions since August 31, 2019. In evaluating the exposure associated with various non-income tax filing positions, the Company accrues for probable and estimable exposures for non-income tax related tax contingencies. As of February 29, 2020 and August 31, 2019, the Company has recorded within other accrued expenses and other current liabilities a total of $3.1 million and $3.2 million, respectively, for various non-income tax related tax contingencies. While the Company believes the recorded liabilities are adequate, there are inherent limitations in projecting the outcome of litigation, in estimating probable additional income tax liability taking into account uncertain tax positions and in evaluating the probable additional tax associated with various non-income tax filing positions. As such, the Company is unable to make a reasonable estimate of the sensitivity to change of estimates affecting its recorded liabilities. As additional information becomes available, the Company assesses the potential liability and revises its estimates as appropriate. In two other countries where the Company operates, minimum income tax rules require the Company to pay taxes based on a percentage of sales rather than income. As a result, the Company is making income tax payments substantially in excess of those it would expect to pay based on taxable income. The Company had income tax receivables of $9.7 million and $7.8 million and deferred tax assets of $2.9 million and $2.7 million as of February 29, 2020 and August 31, 2019, respectively, in these countries. While the rules related to refunds of income tax receivables in these countries are either unclear or complex, the Company has not placed any type of allowance on the recoverability of these tax receivables or deferred tax assets, because the Company believes that it is more likely than not that it will ultimately succeed in its refund requests. Other Commitments In January 2017, the Company purchased a distribution center in Medley, Miami-Dade County, Florida. The Company transferred its Miami dry distribution center activities that were previously in the leased facility to the new facility during the third quarter of fiscal year 2017. As of February 29, 2020, all of the vacated space has been subleased (and/or returned to the landlord). As part of the subleases, the Company provided the landlord of the leased facility a letter of credit (“LOC”) for the initial amount of $500,000 which entitled the landlord to draw on the LOC based on a decreasing scale over four years if certain conditions were to occur related to nonpayment by the new tenant. The balance of this LOC decreases at an annual rate of $125,000 starting in August 2018. As of February 29, 2020, the remaining balance of the LOC was $250,000. Although this agreement is considered a guarantee, in measuring the fair value, the Company considers the risk and probability of default by the third party tenant as not likely nor probable based on the Company’s review of the third party tenant’s financial position as well as the third party’s considerable capital investment into the leased facility. Therefore, the Company has not recorded a liability for this guarantee. The Company is also committed to non-cancelable construction service obligations for various warehouse club developments and expansions. As of February 29, 2020 and August 31, 2019, the Company had approximately $10.8 million and $14.9 million, respectively, in contractual obligations for construction services not yet rendered. From time to time, the Company has entered into general land purchase and land purchase option agreements. The Company’s land purchase agreements are typically subject to various conditions, including, but not limited to, the ability to obtain necessary governmental permits or approvals. A deposit under an agreement is typically returned to the Company if all permits or approvals are not obtained. Generally, the Company has the right to cancel any of our agreements to purchase land without cause by forfeiture of some or all of the deposits we have made pursuant to the agreement. As of February 29, 2020, the Company had entered into a land purchase option agreement that, if completed, would have resulted in the use of approximately $4.3 million in cash. However, subsequent to this date, the Company decided not to execute this land purchase option agreement, as a result of the uncertainties surrounding the economic implications from the COVID-19 outbreak. The table below summarizes the Company’s interest in real estate joint ventures, commitments to additional future investments and the Company’s maximum exposure to loss as a result of its involvement in these joint venture as of February 29, 2020 (in thousands):
Entity |  | % ‎Ownership |  | Initial ‎Investment |  | Additional ‎Investments |  | Net Income Inception to Date |  | Company’s ‎Variable ‎Interest ‎in Entity |  | Commitment ‎to Future ‎Additional ‎Investments(1) |  | Company's ‎Maximum ‎Exposure ‎to Loss in ‎Entity(2)
GolfPark Plaza, S.A. |  | 50 | % |  | $ | 4,616 |  | $ | 2,402 |  | $ | 114 |  | $ | 7,132 |  | $ | 99 |  | $ | 7,231
Price Plaza Alajuela PPA, S.A. |  | 50 | % |  |  | 2,193 |  |  | 1,236 |  |  | 74 |  |  | 3,503 |  |  | 785 |  |  | 4,288
Total |  |  |  |  | $ | 6,809 |  | $ | 3,638 |  | $ | 188 |  | $ | 10,635 |  | $ | 884 |  | $ | 11,519
(1)The parties intend to seek alternate financing for the project, which could reduce the amount of investments each party would be required to provide. The parties may mutually agree on changes to the project, which could increase or decrease the amount of contributions each party is required to provide. (2)The maximum exposure is determined by adding the Company’s variable interest in the entity and any explicit or implicit arrangements that could require the Company to provide additional financial support.

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