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14. Income Tax
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2018
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]  
Income Tax

The Company files a consolidated federal income tax return including all its domestic subsidiaries. State tax returns are filed on a consolidated, combined or separate basis depending on the applicable laws relating to the Company and its subsidiaries.

 

Income tax expense for each of the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 consisted of $7 thousand and $6 thousand of state and local taxes.

 

During the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, there is minimal tax expense recognized. The deferred tax liability resulted in a reduction in the valuation allowance of the Company, as the Company believes the reversal of the deferred tax liability will occur prior to the expiration of the NOL carryforward. U.S. loss and foreign loss before income taxes are as follows:

 

   

Year Ended

December 31,

 
    2018     2017  
United States   $ (36,131 )   $ (30,687 )
Foreign     (149 )     (1,077 )
Pretax Income   $ (36,280 )   $ (31,764 )

 

Income tax benefit differs from the amounts computed by applying the statutory U.S. federal income tax rate (21%) to loss before income taxes as a result of the following:

 

   

Year Ended

December 31,

 
    2018     2017  
Income tax expense (benefit) at the federal statutory rate   $ (7,619 )   $ (10,799 )
Tax Rate Re-measurement - 2017 Tax Cut     -       19,600  
State tax expense (benefit)     (632 )     (1,689 )
Foreign tax differential     450       1,154  
Stock-based compensation     150       299  
Interest expense     -       33  
GILTI Inclusion     97       -  
Other     (47 )     (24 )
Credits     -       (24 )
Valuation allowance     7,608       (8,544 )
Income Tax Expense   $ 7     $ 6  
                 
Effective Tax Rate     -0.02 %     -0.02 %

  

The components of the net deferred tax asset or (liability) are as follows:

 

   

Year Ended

December 31,

 
    2018     2017  
Org, Start-up and Intangible Assets   $ 4,723     $ 5,045  
Stock Based Comp     301       223  
Prop., Plant, and Equip.     (13,631 )     (14,551 )
NOLs and R&D Credits     56,270       53,874  
Interest Expense Carryover     4,722       -  
Ethanol Credits     1,500       1,500  
Debt Extinguishment     -       91  
Other, net     450       545  
Subtotal     54,335       46,727  
Valuation Allowance     (54,335 )     (46,727 )
Deferred tax assets (liabilities)   $ -     $ -  

 

Based on the Company’s evaluation of current and anticipated future taxable income, the Company believes it is more likely than not that insufficient taxable income will be generated to realize the net deferred tax assets, and accordingly, a valuation allowance has been set against these net deferred tax assets.

 

The Company does not provide for U.S. income taxes for any undistributed earnings of the Company’s foreign subsidiaries, as the Company considers these permanently reinvested in the operations of such subsidiaries and have a cumulative foreign loss.  At December 31, 2018 and 2017, these undistributed losses totaled $12.1 million, and $12.0 million, respectively. If any earnings were distributed, some countries may impose withholding taxes.  Following the passage of the 2017 U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the U.S. imposed a transition tax on the accumulated earnings of the Company’s foreign subsidiaries through December 31, 2017.  Since the foreign subsidiaries have a cumulative loss, there was no U.S. federal tax impact related to the transition tax.  Not all future earnings of the foreign subsidiaries will be subject to U.S. income taxes as the U.S. has moved to a modified territorial system for tax years beginning after December 31, 2017.  Finally, due to the Company’s overall deficit in foreign cumulative earnings and its U.S. loss position, the Company does not believe a material net unrecognized U.S. state deferred tax liability exists.

 

ASC 740 Income Taxes provides that the tax effects from an uncertain tax position can be recognized in the Company’s financial statements only if the position is more-likely-than-not of being sustained on audit, based on the technical merits of the position. Tax positions that meet the recognition threshold are reported at the largest amount that is more-likely-than-not to be realized. This determination requires a high degree of judgment and estimation. The Company periodically analyzes and adjusts amounts recorded for the Company’s uncertain tax positions as events occur to warrant adjustment when the statutory period for assessing tax on a given tax return, period expire or if tax authorities provide administrative guidance or a decision is rendered in the courts. The Company does not reasonably expect the total amount of uncertain tax positions to significantly increase or decrease within the next 12 months. As of December 31, 2018, the Company’s uncertain tax positions were not significant for income tax purposes.

 

We conduct business globally and, as a result, one or more of the Company’s subsidiaries file income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction and various state and foreign jurisdictions. In the normal course of business, the Company is subject to examination by taxing authorities throughout the world, including such major jurisdictions as India, Mauritius, and the United States. The Company files a U.S. federal income tax return and tax returns in three U.S. states, as well as in two foreign jurisdictions. Penalties and interest are classified as general and administrative expenses.

 

The following describes the open tax years, by major tax jurisdiction, as of December 31, 2018:

 

United States — Federal   2007 – present  
United States — State   2008– present  
India   2010 – present  
Mauritius   2006 – present  

 

As of December 31, 2018, the Company had federal net operating loss carryforwards of approximately $188.0 million and state net operating loss carryforwards of approximately $195.0 million. The Company also has approximately $1.5 million of alcohol and cellulosic biofuel credit carryforwards. These federal and state net operating loss and other tax credit carryforwards expire on various dates between 2027 and 2037. Under the tax law of 2017, net operating loss and credit carryforwards available to offset future income in any given year may be limited by U.S. or India statute regarding net operating loss carryforwards and timing of expirations or upon the occurrence of certain events, including significant changes in ownership interests. Due to 2017 U.S. Tax Reform, U.S. Federal NOLS created after 2017 no longer expire. Federal NOLS carry forwards of $11.0 million as of December 31, 2018 which have no expiration date. The Company’s India subsidiary also will have net operating loss carryforwards as of March 31, 2019, its tax fiscal year end, of approximately $8.0 million in U.S. dollars, which expire from March 31, 2019 to March 31, 2026.